That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

The goddess of the underworld, Ereshkigal, put one hand on her hip, raised her chin, and scoffed, "Are you serious?"

"What."

"You really intend to help humanity in this era, even though you yourself are just an insignificant human being. You don't belong to this world, do you? Whatever happens to the people here is none of your business."

Hall shrugged. "Humans are creatures that can't survive on their own."

Even so, there's no point in struggling.

"The curse of decline that befell Uruk, wasn't it you who set it up?"

"That's right. I'm so grateful for your leniency. Rather than dying in the mouth of a monster or becoming food for that monster goddess, it's better to leave this world unknowingly, let your soul return to the underworld, and enjoy eternal peace."

Hall scoffed, "Nobody will appreciate your magnanimity."

Upon hearing Hall's words, Ereshkigal showed a moment of intense disappointment and raised his voice in rebuttal: "Of course I know, you don't need to tell me."

"So, what do you want from me?"

Ereshkigal glared at Hall with her delicate eyes: "It's nothing. You still have the cloak I forgot last time, right? Please give it back to me. Also, I didn't come here just for you. This is a battlefield, perfect for reaping the souls of dead soldiers."

"Yes, yes, Goddess." Hall took out the cloak from the alternate dimension and returned it to Ereshkigal.

The blonde girl retorted, "What? I'm a legitimate goddess, you should speak to me with even greater respect."

Hall patted the empty seat next to him and said with a smile, "There's still some time before the Warcraft attack. How about we sit down and have a chat?"

"..."

Ereshkigal stared at Hall's face. "If you really want to, I'll stay and keep you company."

"Great, sublime, and lovely goddess of the underworld, please stay and protect this unarmed magician no matter what."

"Kill you! Killing you is definitely the best course of action!"

"Okay, okay, I apologize."

Ereshkigal sat down next to Hall, her long golden hair falling down, her pretty face showing a complicated expression: "After returning to the Underworld, I used my powers to look at the parallel world memories related to you."

How could someone with such power do something like this...?

Hall thought for a moment, and since it seemed that Ishtar had "borrowed" the Bull of Heaven from his other self using the power of authority, he wasn't too surprised. "What are your thoughts?"

"It's nothing, just an insignificant memory from the goddess's life. But to be able to defeat me, the goddess of the underworld, even in a possessed and summoned state, I'll give you a compliment."

“So…” Hall stroked his chin and asked in a low voice.

Ereshkigal retorted aggressively, "So what? Do you expect me to be grateful to you?"

“No, I mean we’re still friends.” Hall blinked.

Ereshkigal blushed and looked away, saying irritably, "Whatever, but let me make this clear beforehand: goddesses are all known for their terrible personalities, and I, as the goddess of the underworld, am one of the best among them. Just like you said, killing humans with the Curse of Weakening is commonplace for me."

That's really scary.

“That’s right~ that’s right~” Ereshkigal replied dejectedly.

Hall was speechless. He clearly didn't want this response, yet he brought it up himself. Was this what they called arrogance and composure?

Ereshkigal glanced at Hall, noticing the displeasure in Hall's eyes, and said, "What? Are you looking at me like that, mocking me?"

"It's nothing, I just think you're cute or something."

The goddess of the underworld's face flushed crimson. Her voice rose at first, then gradually weakened: "Cute? Say it! Say it! What nonsense are you spouting! I am the goddess of the underworld, how am I possibly cute!"

Hall said with a smile, "It's adorable in every way."

Ereshkigal lowered her head, her pretty face flushed red, the blush spreading to her ears. After calming her excited mood, she met Hall's teasing gaze, her expression both shy and slightly angry: "Now there's another reason for human extinction, it's because of big liars like you."

Hall shrugged innocently.

"Since you have the ability to travel between different worlds, you must have been to many places."

"There's much more than you can imagine."

"Then tell me about your experiences. You know I've been in the underworld all this time, and even now I'm only able to sneak out a little because of the chaos in the human world."

What do you want to know?

"Let me think... stories that could give me a deeper understanding of humanity, anything within that scope."

"Then I'll tell you a story about a partner of justice."

"A partner of justice, what is that?"

"Those who are hailed as heroes by humankind are partners of justice."

"Just like that King Gilgamesh?"

"No, that King Gilgamesh was one of the Servants summoned by that Holy Grail War, playing the role of the villain."

Ereshkigal's eyes widened, his interest piqued: "No way! That's Gilgamesh, the King! He's actually participating in the Holy Grail War? He'll definitely be the winner."

"That was true at the beginning."

"So you mean he lost in the end?"

"Now I'll begin. You'll find out as you listen. That man's name is Emiya Kiritsugu..."

······

The palace in Uruk was brightly lit.

"Ah!"

King Gilgamesh, who was examining the stone tablet, sneezed loudly and frowned, muttering to himself, "What's going on? I have a strange feeling."

"Could it be a curse? No... It's more like being spied on by someone with clairvoyance or something, or being mentioned by someone. My body and consciousness haven't changed much. Forget it, it's not worth expending magic to investigate this level."

Simply mentioning King Gilgamesh wouldn't elicit such a strong reaction, but harboring malice is a completely different story.

This finally reveals that I'm an Ereshkigal fan.

Chapter 359 Ai Lei's Bet

"The knight with the title of [Radiant Appearance] committed suicide under his master's command. Before his death, his wish could not be fulfilled, he was betrayed by his master, and all his resentment and anger consumed his reason."

He said: "You bunch of bastards, you're so eager to win... that you'd resort to such despicable means to obtain the Holy Grail, trampling my only wish into the ground. Aren't you bastards ashamed?!"

Hall mimicked Diarmuid's resentful voice, baring his teeth: "Unforgivable... absolutely unforgivable! You dead, so obsessed with fame and fortune, so trampling on the honor of knights, grant your wishes with my blood! May the Holy Grail be cursed, may your desires be afflicted! When you fall into hell, you will surely face the wrath of Diarmuid!!"

While telling the story of Faste/zero, observe the reaction of the goddess of the underworld.

Because it was a possession summon, inheriting the humanity of a girl named Rin Tohsaka, the goddess of the underworld behaved like a child captivated by a story, clutching her blonde hair nervously.

"Cough cough."

Sensing Hall's gaze, Ereshkigal coughed to cover his lapse in composure.

Moved by the story, Ereshkigal was both angry and pitied Diarmuid's plight. Clenching her fists, she cried out in indignation: "Humans are indeed so despicable! And what happened to the magicians who fought for the Holy Grail? That magician named Emiya Kiritsugu used such despicable methods, yet he claimed to want to become an ally of justice!"

"Well···"

Hall gazed at the distant plains, his eyes deep and thoughtful, where darkness had settled.

it has started.

That's all for today.

The goddess of the underworld hung her head in dejection: "How could this be! Keep going, we've reached a crucial moment."

Hall pointed to the distant plains: "It's about to begin here."

"what?"

Boom!Boom!Boom!

The urgent tolling of the bells shattered the silence of the night.

A red light shone on the high wall, like fireworks piercing the night sky, bursting open in the high sky above the plain, turning into thousands of hellfires pouring down.

Boom!

By the light of the raging fire, one could see the writhing shadows of beasts on the dark plain. They looked up at the firelight and let out a low growl of fear before being swallowed up by the flames. Hundreds of demonic beasts vanished into thin air in an instant.

However, the horde of monsters illuminated by the firelight terrified the human soldiers even more, as they had never seen such a large number before.

Tomoe Gozen, who fired the arrow, stood on the castle wall, like a demon from Japanese mythology, her silver hair ablaze with flames, her armor and longbow glowing red.

"It's even more practical than I imagined."

Tomoe Gozen's crimson eyes reflected flames, as if she wanted to devour the battlefield. A cruel smile, yearning for blood, lingered on her lips—the very nature of a demon.

The Spirit Origin Enhancement Device allowed her to unleash her full power.

"Now! Project!"

On the other side, Leonidas I's loud command drowned out the roars of millions of monsters. At the foot of the high north wall, dozens of catapults launched in unison, hurling buckets of molten iron made from special ores in and out.

boom! boom! boom!

One after another, bright red sparks bloomed in the dark plains. The molten iron was as powerful as modern artillery shells, causing considerable damage to the dense waves of monsters.

Before the monster horde gets close to the north wall, more damage needs to be dealt to it.

Tomoe Gozen continued, "Fire the arrows!"

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

On the north wall, archers fired in unison, thousands of arrows flying out with a sound like a torrential downpour.

Within a minute, they dealt a crushing blow to the menacing army of monsters.

······

"Warcraft... has stopped."

On Hall's side, Ereshkigal was completely stunned; the night could not obstruct the goddess's gaze.

This attack by the soldiers of the North Wall completely overturned her understanding of humanity.

Are we still the weak, incompetent humans who only offer sacrifices to the gods for protection? Can humanity survive even if the gods leave the earth?

The power of monsters is ten times that of humans, and their numbers are dozens of times greater.

Why didn't we back down?