Era of Heroic Spirits: I Was Exposed by Alaya

A crisp shattering sound rang out.

Countless onlookers watched as the supposedly indestructible horn fractured under the assault.

Clearly.

The earlier full-powered strike from Quetzalcoatl had already dealt significant damage.

Now, combined with Ana's all-out attack, the final blow had been delivered.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

The fractures rapidly spread, branching in all directions.

In the blink of an eye, the horn was on the verge of total collapse.

Rumble—!

Her enormous dragon horns were finally shattered.

Tiamat, who had intended to take flight, could only crash heavily to the ground once more.

The sea of black mud boiled violently.

Yet, the colossal Beast Goddess, with surprising tenderness, placed a flower wreath into Nameless's hands and gently sent him skyward with her destructive magic.

"Thank you truly, for this wreath. If you ever come to Greece, please do visit me!" Ana smiled as she bid him farewell.

A soft violet glow blossomed around her.

Her immense form dissolved into countless fragments of light, scattering into the air...

The scene was deeply moving—

-[Ah, summoned from Greece, she bore such a heavy burden, blaming herself for everything!]

-[Ana, you're an angel—none of this was your fault!]

-[All of it was the doing of the Demon God King Goetia!]

-[So touching... A simple wreath, yet she was willing to sacrifice everything to protect humanity!]

...

"Ana has become light too!"

Roya couldn't help but wipe the tears from her eyes.

It was truly heartrending.

Despite being a hated monster, she was willing to give everything for humanity.

"That was her true self," Souma sighed softly.

He could have stopped her.

But he didn't.

Becoming the terrifying Beast Goddess was something Ana had loathed above all else.

She had always sought redemption.

Now, by shattering Tiamat's horns, she had finally achieved it.

Her past sins and slaughter vanished with her transformation into light.

The little angel had returned to the Age of Gods in Greece, reunited with her two sisters to live on.

Thinking of this, Nameless couldn't help but recall their reunion in Greece.

How adorable she had been...

The video continued.

"Alright!"

Nameless carefully stored the wreath and nodded firmly.

Mounted on his wyvern, he began his return to Uruk.

The initial defensive preparations were now complete.

Quetzalcoatl and the Beast Goddess had returned to their own worlds.

Thus, the next step relied on the final defensive line painstakingly built by the King of Heroes to stall the enemy's advance.

They needed to buy enough time for Ereshkigal.

To truly defeat Tiamat, she had to be lured into the Underworld!

Upon the city walls.

Gilgamesh's crimson eyes gleamed with admiration. "Well done. It seems even among goddesses, there are those worthy of trust!"

Without the full efforts of these two goddesses, Tiamat would have already flown over and annihilated Uruk, ending everything for all of them!

If only all goddesses were like those two, would they have had to struggle so hard?

"Why are you looking at me?"

Ishtar puffed up, shameless yet defiant.

She had already been humiliated enough—what was a little more?

"..."

Gilgamesh simply ignored her, turning his gaze to her sister instead. "How much longer?"

"I'm working as fast as I can, but the scale is just too vast!"

Ereshkigal complained wearily.

Dragging all of Uruk into the Underworld was an enormous undertaking.

Even though she had spent the past decade digging bit by bit, completing it was no easy feat.

Then.

Nameless suddenly stepped forward, reaching out to gently touch the mirror.

"H-Hey, what are you doing?" Ereshkigal's face flushed as she instinctively recoiled.

Nameless smiled. "You've worked hard. I owe you one."

"Hmph, I'm not doing this for you, but for the entire world!"

The exhaustion on Ereshkigal's face vanished instantly, and she nearly couldn't contain her excitement.

She was already calculating in her heart what she should make the other party do.

"...Enough. This king will let you witness the preparations I've made over these past six months!"

Gilgamesh watched the two with complicated emotions.

Somehow, it reminded him of the interactions between Nameless and Ereshkigal.

Gazing at the rapidly approaching Primordial Mother Goddess in the distance, he declared: "When she became a Beast of Humanity, she ceased to be the goddess Tiamat!"

"Then how can we stop Mother?"

Ishtar couldn't help but frown. "Without an outlet for her hatred, without a target for her infinite malice, there's simply no way to stop her!"

"Hmph. Naturally, the King shall bear it all! The King shall shoulder all the evils of this world!"

Gilgamesh snorted coldly.

Both his dearest friends had left him behind.

Now, he would bear everything alone!

By his side, Nameless stood quietly, not uttering a word, yet the corners of his lips curled slightly into a faint smile.

Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, raised his hand and pointed at the cannons lining the city walls. "Come, let Tiamat witness Uruk's final stand!"

"How can you do this? The soldiers are all... Do you intend to fight alone?" Dr. Roman exclaimed in shock.

In the previous waves of battle, countless soldiers had already perished.

On the entire city wall, the only one left standing for Uruk was the King of Heroes himself!

"Hmph, don't underestimate this king's magical energy, you fool!"

Gilgamesh snorted coldly. "The 360 Noble Phantasms of the King installed at the gates—all shall be controlled by this king alone!"

"You arrogant bastard, are you trying to throw your life away?" Nameless attempted to dissuade him from such a reckless act.

"Who do you take this king to be? Do you dare presume this king would surrender?"

Gilgamesh's reply brooked no argument.

Boom!

At the distant horizon, the black mud surged forth like a tidal wave.

Tiamat's colossal form had fully emerged into the sight of all.

Boom!

The barrels of the cannons on the walls simultaneously adjusted their aim.

Gilgamesh stood atop the wall, holding a stone-carved book in his hand.

At this moment,

Though he stood alone, his presence was as overwhelming as an entire army.

"All of you, watch closely!"

Gilgamesh roared.

Then, the 360 Noble Phantasms—Divine Authority Seals—were simultaneously activated under his command.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The cannons erupted in unison, unleashing terrifying beams of light that blasted toward Tiamat.

Under this relentless assault, her advance was momentarily halted.

But at that very instant, Tiamat's violet-red eyes suddenly locked onto the city wall.

Nameless lunged forward, projecting a shield in his hands, attempting to block the attack.

"No, your shield won't hold!"

Gilgamesh forcefully shoved him aside.

Boom!

A violet beam of light arrived in an instant from afar.

A death ray surpassing even divine might—born from the Evil of Humanity—pierced straight through the King of Heroes' chest!

The once-proud and indomitable king now bore a gaping, gruesome hole in his torso, visible straight through to the other side.

Everyone was stunned—

-[Damn it, Tiamat! How could you ambush him like that?!]

-[Weren't we supposed to fight head-on? That was a dirty move!]

-[It's over… That's a fatal wound. The King of Heroes is done for!]

-[Nameless tried to block it, but the King pushed him away!]

"An ambush from the Evil of Humanity?"

Roya stared blankly at the screen.

Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that the mighty Evil of Humanity would resort to such underhanded tactics.

Against an attack of this magnitude, who could possibly withstand it?

The King of Heroes must have foreseen a fragment of the future—that the beam would shatter Nameless' projected shield and kill him—which was why he pushed him aside.

Realizing this only made Roya's emotions even more complicated.

Was this really the same person from Unlimited Blade Works?

No one who saw this scene could possibly connect the two.

This had to be a genetic mutation!

In the video.

"Hmph… resorting to sniping? How unsportsmanlike. But I must admit, your aim was impeccable."

The King of Heroes glanced down at the hollow wound in his chest.

Beside him, Mash couldn't hold back her cry. "King of Heroes!"

"Pay it no mind. A mere fatal wound means nothing!"

Gilgamesh instead turned to Nameless beside him, "And you, how dare you try to shield me? Are you alright? Good, as long as you're unharmed!"

Despite having his own chest pierced through, he was still concerned about Nameless by his side.

At this moment, everyone was deeply shaken.

What was even more unbelievable was...

Despite suffering such a fatal wound, he still raised the Tablet of Destinies.

Mashu cried out in panic, "Your Majesty, please stop! No matter what, you can't—"

How could he possibly continue fighting while blood gushed wildly from his chest?

Yet Gilgamesh's gaze shifted elsewhere as he asked, "Master of Chaldea, do you also believe I've reached my limit? That Uruk has been utterly destroyed?"

Under his questioning, Nameless suddenly clenched his right fist and placed it over his left chest, declaring, "Uruk is still standing here!"

"Hahaha, I knew you wouldn't underestimate me!" Gilgamesh laughed heartily, coughing up blood yet losing none of his majesty.

Witnessing this scene, Roya felt a tremor in her very soul.

In the group chat on her phone, countless others fell into a brief silence.

One person timidly asked—

-[What do I do? I think I've completely fallen for the King of Heroes!]

This gaming group was originally named—

[King of Heroes Anti-Fan Base]

Many had turned from fans to haters after seeing the King of Heroes' embarrassing past moments, swearing oaths to keep each other in check—anyone who dared to stan him again would be a dog.

But seeing him shine so brilliantly now...

The entire group wavered.

Another quickly replied—

-[Dammit, this is way too cool! It's like he's slapping you in the face with sheer awesomeness! Fine, I'll be a dog then!]

This was nothing like the chuunibyou version of Gilgamesh. Under what circumstances could that bratty version grow into the wise king with such indomitable spirit?

A third person was even more straightforward—

-[Woof!]

The next moment, the chat formerly known as [King of Heroes Anti-Fan Base] instantly flooded with messages—

-[Woof woof woof!]

-[Woof woof woof!]

-[Woof woof woof!]

-[Awooo!!!]

...

Even Roya couldn't resist sending one herself.

The King of Heroes, radiating the dignity of a wise king, was truly impossible to hate.

The barrage of comments exploded simultaneously—

-[Holy shit, instant conversion—I'm a dog now!]

-[Uruk is still standing here!!!]

-[So damn cool! This might be the King of Heroes' most epic moment ever!]

-[All the fans he lost before? They're coming back now, probably even more than before!]

-[Wise King OP! I'm your most devoted fan from now on!]

...

Despite suffering a surely fatal wound, he dismissed it as "just a scratch" while worrying about Nameless beside him.

This display of the wise king's charisma instantly won over countless hearts.

In Unlimited Blade Works, many had turned from fans to neutrals or outright haters.

But now...

Those who once despised the chuunibyou version found themselves utterly captivated by the elder wise king version.

Yet a question remained.

The Wise King Gilgamesh had already sustained a fatal wound—who would stop Tiamat now?

Would Nameless have to sacrifice himself to activate a Phantasm Summoning before even reaching the underworld?

Just then...

A figure no one expected suddenly stepped between them and the Primordial Mother Goddess.

It was Kingu, whom Nameless and the King of Heroes had saved earlier!

***

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