Jobless Reincarnation: Emiya the Great Hero Must Show His True Skills

He then locked the room securely, checked his equipment, and prepared to head towards Asura's Palace.

But just as he took a step, he heard the sound of the door lock being unlocked behind him.

"who!?"

Such rapid unlocking is undoubtedly due to the power of magic.

Shirou drew his longsword from his waist with almost lightning speed, kicked open his door, and found a figure sitting inside.

He was an old man dressed in tattered clothes, his face etched with wrinkles, his hair white, and his beard unkempt, giving him an untidy appearance.

He exudes an aura that is both sophisticated and decadent, along with the presence of a powerful figure, making him impossible to ignore.

Faced with such a being, Shirou almost instinctively assumed it was a powerful expert and was about to swing his sword at it.

But before he made his move, he noticed the old man's eyes, eyes that he recognized very well, eyes that he felt he had seen countless times.

It was so familiar that it made him feel dazed.

The moment the old man saw Shirou, tears of emotion streamed down his face. It was as if he had dreamt of this scene countless times. He cried out, "Shirou-nii... I've finally... I've finally seen you again..."

"What? What did you call me?"

Upon hearing this familiar address and looking into the old man's familiar eyes, Shirou almost instantly recalled a familiar name.

But he found it hard to believe that it really was like that.

In his confusion, the old man, with a moved expression, cried out, "Although you may not believe it, Shirou-kun, I must tell you, I am Rudeus Grellat, and I come from the future!"

"..."

The old man's words struck Shirou like a bolt from the blue.

What Shirou didn't expect was what the other person said next.

"I used time magic to go back in time to save you in this time, so that you wouldn't die at the hands of gods and men!"

"You mean... gods and humans?"

"Yes, if things proceed as planned, the conspiracy of the god of men will soon be officially launched. You, Shirou, and everyone in the Greirat family will die! All of this has been planned by the god of men in advance!!"

Chapter 367 Will Shirou Become an Enemy of the Whole World? Old Rudeus's Confession!

"Everyone...will die?"

When faced with the words of Rudeus, who claimed to have returned from the future using time magic, Shirou's first reaction was naturally disbelief.

After all, putting everything else aside, time magic is such an exaggerated thing that it's hard to believe it actually exists just by imagining it. If such a convenient ability existed, the whole world would fall into endless chaos due to all sorts of time paradoxes.

The old man who called himself Rudeus seemed to be aware of Shirou's suspicions. He spoke quietly, "Time magic is something I have spent my whole life pursuing. Using this magic is not without its price, or rather, the price is extremely high. It requires an unimaginable amount of magical power. Even with my magical power, I could not easily complete this magic and was forced to pay a huge price for it."

"A huge cost...you mean?"

"I don't have much longer to live."

The old man spoke bitterly, touched his abdomen, and then squinted his eyes with deep emotion, revealing a self-deprecating smile.

Shirou also realized that the old man's life force had depleted to a state that was almost at its limit. In this state, the old man was almost no different from a dead person. Ordinary healing methods could not cure him. Perhaps only a resurrection spell could bring him back to life.

But resurrection itself is as elusive as time magic.

The old man was destined to die here.

Because of this situation, Shirou somewhat believed that the other party had indeed traveled from the future back to the past through time magic, but he still found it hard to believe what the other party had just said.

"You're saying I'll be killed by the gods, and that everyone in the Grerat family will die? Is that true? Why would the gods do that?"

Concerned that the elderly man didn't have much time left, Shirou raised several questions that were of greatest concern to him.

Old Rudius remained silent for a few seconds before speaking, "That's right. At this point, the God of Man has completed all his plans. He only needs to add one more spark, and he will launch his conspiracy in full force, causing your tragic death, and ensuring that no one in the Greirat family will survive. As for the God of Man's purpose, even fifty years after that tragedy, I still don't fully understand it. But ultimately, it's probably because the God of Man has always been wary of you, Shirou."

"Are gods and men afraid of me?"

"Yes, what the god fears most is the destruction of his physical form. Generally speaking, no one can touch the god's physical form, and even if they do, it is difficult to defeat him head-on. But you, Shirou, may have such an ability to truly destroy the god, which is why he disregarded everything and set up a deadly trap for you."

Old Rudius seemed to feel that time was limited, so he spoke at length.

Faced with such a large amount of information, Shirou couldn't fully process it all at once. He didn't know whether he should believe this suddenly appearing being.

Is the other person really Rudeus?

Even if he really is the future Rudeus, should I believe him?

The situation was so sudden that Shirou was unable to make a judgment immediately.

But through the old man's eyes, he still saw something familiar. At least he was gradually becoming certain that the old man in front of him was indeed the future Rudeus.

The only problem is the claim that the other party wants to kill him, as suggested by the gods.

Is all of this really true?

“I know you can’t believe me right away, so I’ll tell you everything I know. You can compare everything over the next few days to verify my judgment.”

"What happened in the future?"

Shirou grew increasingly curious about the experiences of the old Rudeus before him, his gaze fixed intently on the man.

Old Rudius quickly spoke up: "It all started when I dreamed of the existence of gods and men."

"You mean... gods and humans?"

"Yes, and even before that point in time, no, after the Great Transfer, I started dreaming of gods and men from time to time."

"what?"

Old Rudeus revealed information that left Shirou speechless.

If what the other party said is true, then wouldn't that mean Rudeus has also been in contact with gods and men in his dreams?

Could the other party be an apostle of God?

"A god or mortal can only have three apostles at a time; this is something I will confirm in the future."

Old Rudeus spoke with a complicated expression, "So after the Great Transfer, he contacted me, along with you, Shirou, and another being I don't know about. But during the time of the Becarit Continent, the gods and humans severed the connection between me and you, Shirou, and replaced it with the water goddess Leda and Darius."

“I don’t know what happened after you came into contact with the god, but after the god contacted me, he really helped me a lot, so much so that I gradually started to lower my guard and mistakenly thought that he was really a pure god and not some fraudster.”

Old Rudius spoke these words with piercing eyes.

Deep within the pupils, something dark and gloomy is hidden.

To put it bluntly, it's anger. Deep within him lies an uncontrollable rage against gods and men, an rage so intense it feels like he wants to tear them to pieces.

The last time Shirou saw someone look at him like that was on the Dragon God Orsteed.

Yes, Shirou saw the same look in old Rudeus as he did in Orsteed.

This further convinced him that everything the other person said might be true...

"In short, the God of Man is a being who can truly bring benefits to people because he has a special ability called futurism, which allows him to see the future. However, this ability can only affect a maximum of three people at the same time, which is why only three of his apostles can exist at the same time."

"The god uses the power of future vision to guide his apostles. At first, he will keep giving correct guidance and making people feel good. But all of this is just bait he has laid for his final harvest. Once the apostles really start to believe him and have no doubt about his advice, they will fall into the trap completely."

"I was so foolish to believe the words of gods and men so easily, which is why I did something I will regret for the rest of my life. Even if I used time magic to travel back in time, I could not make up for the mistake I made!"

Old Rudius's words were like a brand, deeply engraved on him, as could be seen from the burning flames in his pupils.

Without hesitation, Shirou asked, "What did you do?"

"Three days later, the Kingdom of Asura will be engulfed by the most terrifying demonic tide in its history. About one-third of the population of the entire kingdom will die, and the kingdom will be completely destroyed."

"what?"

"It all started with Aisha Grerat, the younger sister of the Grerat family. Due to the schemes of the gods and humans, she was possessed by the reincarnated soul of the demon god Laplace. Because it was a secret operation by the gods and humans, no one knew about it, not even Aisha herself knew the true identity of the soul inside her."

Old Rudius spoke with a horrified expression, "Under Laplace's guidance, Aisha will activate the ancient seal located beneath the capital, fully activating the transfer magic circle that Laplace once used to move the demon army from the Demon Continent to the Central Continent. Of course, Aisha's current physical condition is not sufficient for this, so the gods and humans suggested that I assist Aisha in activating the magic circle."

"The god-man would not reveal his true purpose on the surface. He simply used the excuse that doing so would benefit the Grerat family to get me to cooperate. Because I had completely believed the god-man's words at the time, I did it without any doubt."

"As a consequence, a massive demonic tide will occur, the Kingdom of Asura will be destroyed, Princess Ariel will be unable to withstand the pressure, will be caught up in the political turmoil and die tragically, and the Boreas family will bear the responsibility of protecting the country and die on the battlefield. No one will be able to survive..."

Upon hearing the old man's words, Shirou's expression turned serious.

Although he didn't fully trust the other person, just hearing their words made him imagine how desperate that future would be.

But this also piqued his curiosity, and he couldn't help but ask, "And what about me? What did I do?"

"..."

Upon hearing Shirou's words, old Rudeus remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking, "Shirou, you didn't know anything at first. You were just protecting everyone in the Grerat family during the demonic tide and leading us to escape to the Magic Kingdom. Later, you returned to the Kingdom of Asura and tried your best to stop the demonic tide, but you couldn't save everyone."

"Just then, Aisha was increasingly influenced by the demon Laplace, and she was almost becoming Laplace herself. It was then that you realized she was possessed by the demon and learned that all the tragedies were the result of mistakes made by Aisha and me. But you did not scold Aisha and me. Instead, you said that you would do your best to protect us and would try to find a way to separate the demon from Aisha."

"Just then, information about Aisha being the demon god Laplace was leaked. I don't know who did it, but it's most likely a human god. In any case, everyone in the world now knows that Aisha is the demon god Laplace. The Grerat family has become the target of everyone's hatred, and various countries have made killing Aisha their primary objective, sending a large number of powerful people and experts to assassinate her."

"Even so, Shirou, you didn't give up on Aisha. You fought against the strongmen from various countries and defeated them one by one. Just then, the Ankylosaurus King Percius arrived. Because of the Ankylosaurus King's hatred for Laplace, he forced you to hand over Aisha and wanted to kill her. But Shirou, you chose to protect Aisha and fight against the Ankylosaurus King... I don't know what happened in that battle. I only know that the entire Sky Castle was destroyed in the battle, and every part of the castle was shattered into ruins."

"After the battle, Shirou, you successfully defeated the Ankylosaurus, but you were also seriously injured when you returned. Before you could recover, another powerful enemy arrived: the Dragon God Orsteed. He also came to kill the Demon God Laplace, and at the same time, he wanted to eliminate you, Shirou, who was suspected of becoming an apostle of the gods."

"..."

After hearing old Rudeus's account, Shirou could almost picture that future scene.

If things really develop to that point, he might actually do something to protect his family and turn against the whole world.

In that situation, the concepts of gods and humans no longer matter; he would kill all opponents who stand in his way to protect his beloved family.

All of this was undoubtedly a complete mischief by the gods and men.

As Rudius spoke, he clenched his fists tightly with extreme anger.

"Shirou, you really worked hard. You sought help from the Water God, the Sword God, and the Northern God to improve your strength to the extreme. You laid the groundwork for that battle, dragging the situation to the most favorable position for you. Finally, with the help of special forging abilities, you forged a weapon that could rival the Dragon God's divine sword. You almost achieved the feat of defeating the Dragon God."

"I was almost there, which means I failed to do it..."

"That's right, the one who killed you in the end was Aisha. She was completely controlled by the demon Laplace and catalyzed by the demon's will, launching a final sneak attack on you. I... couldn't do anything, I could only watch the battle begin and end."

The old man lowered his head, his face showing sadness.

"Since you died, Shirou, Aisha has disappeared without a trace. The Dragon God followed in Aisha's footsteps and left, but never appeared again. Paul was extremely saddened by your death and Aisha's disappearance. He drank heavily every day and completely fell into depravity. But in the end, he regained his senses and chose to fight to save Senis. He went to challenge a certain dungeon, hoping to find clues to cure Senis, but died in the process of conquering the dungeon."

"After Paul died, the Grerat family's situation became even more difficult. Because of Aisha, we were regarded as the instigators of the Asura Cataclysm, and no country was willing to accept us. I took Lilia, Senis, and Norn and hid everywhere. Teacher Lokishi also assisted us. But one day, the Templar Knights came to our door. They were all killed by the Templar Knights. Only I survived."

"When everything I owned was gone and I was all alone, I was finally able to calmly think about what had happened and suddenly realized that it was all the fault of God and Man. It was all his schemes and his selfish desires. That guy was the root of all evil and the culprit of everything."

"Everything he did had a purpose, and you can't believe a single word that guy said! And that bastard even admitted it himself when we last met. He told me it was all thanks to me being an idiot that things went the way I wanted... Damn it!"

As the old man spoke, the anger in his eyes became completely uncontrollable, and his expression was filled with madness.

That is undoubtedly the extreme resentment that can only be accumulated by enduring extreme torment and endless suffering.

Shirou thus became increasingly convinced of what the other man said, and of the almost hopeless reality spoken of by Rudeus from the future.

Chapter 368 The Enemy is the Ankylosaurus King and the Dragon God? The Most Difficult Battle Ever!

Old Rudeus's words gave Shirou a clear glimpse of the terrifying future. If nothing unexpected happened and things proceeded normally, the conspiracy of the gods and humans would be fully unleashed, killing countless people and even the Grellat family would not survive, leaving Rudeus all alone in the world.

Shirou could now fully understand why the old man hated gods and men so much; in fact, the old man's hatred was so blatant.

"After saying all that, is the god's goal really just to kill me?"

After hearing everything, Shirou thoughtfully said, "I always felt that the grand spectacle he created, even possessing Aisha with the soul of the demon god Laplace, shouldn't just be for the purpose of dealing with me... If he simply wanted to kill me, he would have had many, many opportunities. After all, putting aside my past self, even now I am only one of the weakest of the great powers. If the gods and humans sent powerful beings to attack me, I would have no chance at all."

"I have absolutely no clue about the purpose of the gods. Orstide or Laplace might know something, but I have never met either of them in the past fifty years."

"Leaving Laplace aside, why can't we find Orstide?"

Shirou hesitated before speaking, "Don't the Seven Stars know Orsteed's location?"

"Seven Stars, she..."

When asked about Seven Stars, Rudeus seemed hesitant, but finally spoke up quietly: "After you died, Shirou, Seven Stars fell into despair. In addition, you had already killed Ankylosaurus. With her own strength, she could no longer find a way to research the world transfer magic, so one day she completely disappeared."

"..."

Old Rudeus wore a sorrowful expression, as if to say that not only the Seven Stars, but also many others connected to Shirou, had fallen into utter despair because of that catastrophic event.

As for the Seven Stars himself, although Old Rudeus did not directly say that he was dead, there is most likely no other possibility.

Once the hope of returning to their original world is lost, it will be difficult for Seven Stars to survive in this world given his personality.

"Is all of this the fault of gods and men?"

"Although everything was planned by humans and gods, I am the one who ultimately made the mistake."

Old Rudeus looked repentant. "If I hadn't helped Aisha activate the transfer magic circle, that catastrophic event wouldn't have happened. So, for the rest of my life, I've been searching for a way to make up for my regrets. At first, my idea was to kill the god and avenge Shirou and the others with my own hands. But I spent a long time and still couldn't find a way. Let alone killing the god, I couldn't even find his exact location."

"Can't find the location of the gods?"