( Shido POV )

" Zafkiel ! Yud Bet ! "

The sound of gunshot and shattering glass echoed through the void. Ah...... that's right..... I died again, didn't I ? How many times did I die ?...... I..... don't remember...... I lost count after the thirty four thousand five hundred and fifty third death..... But at least I can now take solace in the fact that with zafkiel, I can change everything. One week is all I have. One week to change everything. I will not fail. I CANNOT fail. I have to save everyone. A part of me wishes to simply give up everything and accept death. But I cannot do that. Everyone entrusted their hopes onto me. They sacrificed their lives so that I could escape. I cannot abandon them. This is the same as the time when I had to save Origami. Soon, I'll escape this void and appear in the past. I can't waste a single moment. Reine, or rather Mio..... I have to convince her to fight alongside us and not harm the other girls. I am not going to lose her for the second time. And then there's Ellen-san. I'll save her too. Even after being under Isaac's control for all these years, the first thing she did after breaking free was helping me escape. I won't let her or anyone else die. Not again !

" I Am Thou . Thou Art I .

We Are One And The Same.

I Shall Be Thy Blade That Severs Thy Foes And I Shall Be Thy Shield That Protects Thy Kin. "

As the voice echoed through the void, a single golden card appeared in front of me. On it , was the medieval era-esque imagery of a man carrying a bag on a stick walking towards a cliff with a dog following him. As I reached out to touch the card, a blue lotus bloomed from it as a vibrant blue light drove away all the darkness. The light was blinding, yet I couldn't help but stare at it. The light made me feel something that I thought I had lost long back. Hope. Hope that everything will be fine. Hope that everyone that I care about will be safe. I know not whether what was in front of me was the Truth or merely an Illusion, yet I wished to hold onto it , even if it was for just a few more moments.

Suddenly, an intense pain throbbed through my head , which caused me to flinch. Had I just not died several thousands of times before, I would have probably screamed because of it. However, before I could realise what was happening, I found the darkness claiming me once again as I suddenly passed out.......

Location : ???

( 3rd Person POV )

Shido groggily opened his eyes as a veritable flood of information flowed through his mind. Knowledge about the Collective unconscious, the multiverse, the parallel dimensions, branches, the Akakshic Records, the reincarnation system, and of course most importantly, the Fool Arcana. He now knew that he himself had awakened the Fool Arcana.All individuals in the Cosmos at any given time have one of the twenty major Arcanas associated with them. All individuals cycle through the twenty arcana depending upon their current circumstances in life, ranging from the Magician, to Death, the Sun or even Judgement. However, an extremely select few individuals in the Cosmos are born with the capability to have a chance to awaken the Fool Arcana. However, even amongst these select few individuals, only a miniscule number actually manage to actually awaken the Fool Arcana.

There are two conditions for awakening the Fool Arcana. The first being that the world in which the candidate with the potential for awakening resides must be in danger of being destroyed or something that may cause the extinction of sentient life on that world. The second condition is that the candidate must face Death head on fearlessly and selflessly. If both the conditions are satisfied, the individual's consciousness is brought to the Velvet Room, where the velvet room attendants aid the individual to gain power and protect their world from calamity. And once the individual has succeeded, the Fool Arcana transforms into the World Arcana, symbolising that the individual has been acknowledged by the Cosmos itself as they have shouldered upon themselves the weight of a world. After attaining the World Arcana, the individual may choose to stay in their home dimension and continue to safeguard it ( or if their strength is sufficient enough, they may even gain the approval to supervise and safeguard the entire dimensional Branch ) ( AN : Branch here refers to the multiversal system that the dimension is a part of. For example, The Nasuverse constitutes as a branch and so do the RWBY multiverses. ) If the individual does not wish for this, they may choose to travel throughout the Cosmos where they'll be required to protect other worlds which lack Fools of their own from a calamity.

Shido's thoughts were interrupted when he turned to the source of a sudden noise and saw a man with black hair wearing a black tuxedo and black tie sitting on a regal looking black chair. Everything about the guy screamed, ' I am either a Villain or a Morally questionable Person '. The man spoke in a calm manner and said, " Welcome Mr. Itsuka. This is a dimension in the Collective Unconscious that I specially constructed for greeting you. And as for who I am, Well, allow me to introduce myself. I am Nyarlothep, The Crawling Chaos, The Shadow Of Philemon, The one who's presides over the Sea Of Souls , One of The Gatekeepers Of The Akakshic Records and Of course, The Abstracta born of Humanity's Vices. From the information you received upon your awakening, you should have a good idea of my identity. However, before we begin any further, please, take a seat. "

Shido took a deep breath to calm himself. As Nyarlothep had said, the awakening had indeed given him a fair amount of knowledge about him. And his long list of titles were more than self explanatory about him. And while it was true that his morals were slightly questionable, Nyarlothep would never harm a Fool and he had even taken an oath that ensured that he was incapable of doing so without the expressed permission of Philemon, something which had never happened ever. As Shido sat down on the white chair in front of him, he saw that Nyarlothep had a grin plastered on his face.

Nyarlothep spoke in an amicable tone and said, " As you may imagine, this is not the velvet room. Normally, you would be summoned inside the velvet room, but due to some special circumstances, a few changes had to be made. That and it's because of my friendship with Rhadamanthus that I decided to do this. " Shido raised a brow in confusion and asked, " What do you mean by special circumstances ? And who's Rhadamanthus ? " Nyarlothep smirked and said, " Rhadamanthus is another alternate timeline Shido Itsuka. However, he is the ' Origin Incarnate ' for the individual known as Shido Itsuka. That is to say, he is the one from whose existence all other Shido Itsukas came to be in other dimensions. And he is a Fool too. Though his strength greatly eclipses anyone else's. "

Shido was shocked as he asked, " How is that possible ?! If I have awakened the Fool Arcana, all other timelines should have been completely eliminated by the Will Of The World. However, you imply that my alternate timeline self known as Rhadamanthus had awakened the Fool Arcana before me. Then shouldn't my dimension have been erased ? " Nyarlothep released a sigh and said, " While I cannot give you the details, Rhadamanthus is a bit of a special case. Because of his existence, your dimension was saved from termination and by sheer dumb luck you somehow managed to awaken the Fool Arcana. And because of this, now both the dimensions are now allowed to coexist. That is all I can say. "

While Shido wasn't exactly satisfied with the answer, he understood that this was something way above his pay grade. So it was better not to question it. Besides, it wasn't like he was in any hurry to meet his other self. Seeing his calm expression, Nyarlothep smiled and said, " Now, let's get down to business now, shall we ? Due to my friendship with Rhadamanthus, I'm going to give you a bit of ' Benefits ' , so to speak. So for now, you have the following four options. Option First. Given how much you have endured, this option will be the easiest. I'll kill you and then destroy your dimension. The souls will be reincarnated and everyone gets to die peacefully without any tragedy. "

Shido immediately spoke up and said,
" No way in Hell ! " Nyarlothep raised his hands in surrender and said, " No need to get so worked up. I know you weren't going to choose it, bit I was still obligated to put it forth to you. " Shido took a deep breath to calm himself. Nyarlothep have him a polite smile not too dissimilar from the one that a salesman would give to a customer and said, " The second option however, is that I shift you exactly one week into the past. " Shido had a confused expression on his face as he asked, " Isn't that the same as me using Yud Bet ? Why is this even an
option ? "

Nyarlothep paused momentarily and then sighed as he said, " Oh yeah, forgot you lacked information about the nature of reality and existence. Ok, so listen closely kid. It's time for Temporal Dynamics 101 . " Nyarlothep clapped his hands for a dramatic effect and continued speaking as he said, " Tell me, Shido. What is the most commonly used imagery to visualize the flow of time ? " Shido pondered over the question for a second and then answered, " A flowing river. That's the first image when someone asks you to visualize time's flow. "

Nyarlothep shook his head and said,
" While you are indeed correct in your answer, the fact of the matter is, just like the rest of Humanity, your visualisation is wrong. Think about it logically. If time is like the flow of a river, wouldn't that imply that everything that will happen, has already happened. That the future is fixed. It is predetermined. But that doesn't make sense. After all, that would just make it so that the ' Arcana Zeroth ' ability of the Fool's simply wouldn't exist . I assume you know about it from your awakening, yes ? "

Shido pondered over his words for a moment and then nodded his head in understanding. ' Arcana Zeroth ' , was a special skill possessed by individuals with the Fool Arcana. To put it simply, because of this skill, Fools did not possess either Destiny or Fate. That is to say, their path was never predetermined. It was because of this that they could save worlds that were ' Destined ' to be destroyed. It was also the reason why Fools could enter other branches. A Dimensional Branch was essentially a closed system, where everything that was going to happen was already predetermined. The paths that would lead to an outcome did indeed have the potential to change, most certainly, but the outcome was more or less fixed. And while technically speaking, it was theoretically possible to change Destiny, it was extremely difficult to do so without the aid of the Fool Arcana. The probability of doing so was the same as if one were to assign a serial number to every atom within the solar system and then randomly select a number and then finding out that said number was the one assigned to the atom that was part of one of the cells that formed the fingertips of your left hand. That's how astronomically low the odds were. However, as any Fool would tell you, Just Because It Was Astronomically Improbable, It Wasn't Astronomically Impossible. And considering that these were the guys responsible for keeping the Cosmos safe, perhaps their words did carry a fair amount of weight. Besides, it wasn't like Destiny was fixed in stone. Certainly, it was a force that pushes things towards a predetermined outcome, but that was all it did, push. If an individual who had a great Destiny failed to act on it, it was entirely possible that the Destiny would not come to fruition. Of course, Destiny could very well alter events to push the individual towards their fate, but if the individual tried hard enough ( and by hard it meant really, really hard ), they could prevent their Destiny. The stronger the flow of Destiny was around someone, the more it was difficult for them to escape and fight against its influence. Conversely, someone lacking a powerful flow of Destiny could very well act as a random variable in their dimension. It was for this reason that even an ordinary person could end up changing the fates of entire worlds. Of course, it was extremely difficult to do so and hence it teetered on the boundary of ' Theoretically Possible ' and ' Practically Impossible '.

Another privilege that came with the
' Arcana Zeroth ' was the fact that it allowed Fools to enter into other Dimensional Branches. Without possessing it, unless you were a higher being, there were serious consequences to entering a Dimensional Branch other than the one where you belonged. Interdimensional travel was still fine, but the moment when you tried to go from one Branch to another, the Will Of The World would hone its sights on you. After all, the Branches were closed systems with unique rules on how Reality worked. The existence of Laws and certain ' Truths ' remained the same, but other things could be heavily different. If you weren't either a Higher Being or a Fool and still entered into another Branch, best case scenario, you would be wiped out of existence by the Will Of The World itself. Worst case scenario, was the Will Of The World erasing the entire dimension that you were residing in. The Will Of The World didn't have any sentience nor did it have any morality. It was only concerned with ensuring Order and stability throughout the Cosmos, nothing more.

Shido's thoughts were broken when Nyarlothep fake coughed and said, " Now that I have your attention after your mind went on that tangent, I will continue. As I was saying, the future simply doesn't exist. What does exist, is only the present and the past. And even then, the past is always fading out of existence. The correct way to visualize time's flow is to think of a Snowy Mountain with a boulder rolling down. The boulder represents the Present. The imprint left on the snowy surface of the mountain represents the Past. However, the snowfall, representing the phenomena of Temporal Erosion, is when the past starts to disappear from existence itself gradually. Because of this, there is a limit to how much someone can go to the past in any Branch, and it differs from Branch to Branch. For example, a Branch could have it so that it is possible to only return to, let's say only about a decade into the past. Beyond that, it is impossible to go behind in the past as it simply no longer exists. However, for another Branch, it is entirely possible that one may be able to travel to even the birth of a dimension in said Branch. And even traveling to the origin point when the Branch itself came into being is possible in Certain Branches under certain specific circumstances. However, no matter what, one cannot reach the moment when the existence of The Law Of Time came to be. That is because the Laws themselves are not bound to the Dimensions or their Branches and as such, it's impossible to reach them. Think of it like this. Like the branch on an actual tree, it is possible to trace a branch to the point where it's attached to the tree, that is the trunk. However, can you trace the branch to the true origin , that is the root ? Of course not, that's because it's out of your reach as the ground restricts you. The ground here, represents the Nature Of Existence itself. It is a fundamental ' Truth ' of the Cosmos. In all of existence, there exist only Three beings who are able to exist outside the confines of the rules set up by the Cosmos and even then, one of those Three is the Cosmos itself, so there's that. "

While Shido was still processing his words, Nyarlothep waited patiently. Shido paused momentarily and then inquired,
" Then what about things like clairvoyance ? And if the future doesn't exist, traveling to the future is impossible, correct ? " Nyarlothep smiled, happy that Shido was taking this seriously and readily answered his questions as he said, " You see, Clairvoyance shouldn't be called future sight as much as it should be called Future Predicting. Think of the Clairvoyant as essentially using a computer program to predict an outcome. And a thing to remember, all Clairvoyance abilities are directly or indirectly connected to the Akakshic Records itself. The success rate and accuracy of the prediction depends on how strong the connection between the Clairvoyant and the Akakshic Records is, for instance, King Solomon possessed Clairvoyance EX, thereby making it so that he had nearly a hundred percent accuracy rate. Of course, as it is still a prediction, it isn't completely set in stone and you can still try to change it. Of course, ' Try ' being the key word, as things like Fate and Destiny do try to guide the actions to the predetermined outcome. To simplify so that your human mind can understand it, think of the entire process like a simulation. The ability of the Clairvoyant is the computer program on which the simulation is being run and the Akakshic Records are the database, which contains data on everything, from every atom, every subatomic particle and the Laws themselves. The accuracy of your simulation and thereby it's predicted outcome depends on two things : how good your software is, that is the level of your skill and how much data you can obtain from the database, in this case the Akakshic Records. However, that isn't to say that anyone can access all the knowledge in the Akakshic Records. The Akaksha at its core, is a library. The Cosmos's greatest and most complicated library, but a library nonetheless. And like any good library, it has its restricted sections. These sections containing restricted knowledge is something that only the keepers of the Akakshic Records, that being me and Philemon can access. That being said, there's that asshole Rhadamanthus who has now gained access to them , so he's the third person who has knowledge of all of the Akakshic Records. However, do remember that the Akakshic Records aren't everything. They may seem like it, but they aren't. There are things that are so dangerous that their knowledge isn't even kept in the Akakshic Records and instead, only Philemon has access to them. "

Shido asked him again curiously, 
" Then what about the future travelling ? " Nyarlothep stopped momentarily to take a sip of wine from a nearby glass and continued as he said, " Whenever someone thinks that they've traveled to the future, they aren't traveling to the future, but a dimension that resembles the future. Considering the confused look on your face, I'll probably have to elaborate. Here's how it goes. See, as you may now know, several dimensions exist simultaneously in a Branch with only minor differences at times. Certain Branches do indeed exist where powerful Abstracta take care of ' Pruning ' the excess dimensions and timelines, but more often than not, they're generally unregulated. So imagine if a subject, let's call him ' Steve ' wants to travel to the future. And he by some random means obtains a powerful spell to do so. Ignoring the minor things like energy requirements that'll probably require our buddy Steve here to harvest a couple ten thousand or so souls, assume that he uses the spell. And now he finds himself in a world exactly like his own , but when he left his world, it was , let's say fourth of July. But now , it's September 22nd, which coincidentally is also the Summer equinox. So the question is, did our pal Steve time travel ? No. What he did was in fact, teleport to another dimension. The dimension that he traveled to was similar to his own to the point that they were identical with the exception of one tiny detail, that being ironically, time itself. Remember, timelines in two closely related dimensions in a Branch don't have to be running at the same temporal loci. It could be July of 2026 in one dimension while in its neighbouring dimension, it could still be the day that Vasco da Gama set on his sea voyage, or the day when Julius Caesar was assassinated, or going further back, the day when the first humans learned of farming. Or if you wanna get really old school, a dimension nearby could even be at the point where the first single cell organism entered into a symbiotic relationship with another one, leading to the formation of the mitochondria, and giving us the most commonly recited phrase , " The Mitochondria Is The Powerhouse Of The Cell ". I mean seriously, that is some spicy branding that borders on indoctrination. The cellular marketing department did a real good job with this organelle, didn't they ? "

Ignoring the strange tangent that Nyarlothep went at the end, Shido asked ,
" But this still doesn't answer my question of how your method differs from Zafkiel's ? " Nyarlothep calmly replied by saying, " The difference does indeed exist. What Zafkiel would have done was merely transport you one week prior to its usage. In simpler terms, it essentially would have moved you from point A, that being the moment you fired it, to point B, that is, exactly one week prior. However, the fact is, Point A still exists. You have shifted. But the point still remains fixed. It exists, with only your absence. And while it may not seem that big of a deal, you'll find out that such a thing makes it laughably easy to manipulate, trace you and if your control over the Law Of Time is strong enough, even eliminate your existence while you're at point B as your existence is in a state of flux and erasing you would be as easy as popping a bubble. Not only that, the Will Of The World will also try to set things on the right track so as to prevent a divergence in the timeline. You may be familiar with this phenomena in particular as you have experienced it yourself when you saved Tobichi's parents. You may have changed it so that her parents were saved, but the Fated outcome of her parents dying still happened as the Will Of The World corrected the inconsistency. You didn't save them, you just delayed their deaths. That's why Fate and Destiny are such bitches. That said, what I'll be doing both in this option as well as the other options that I'll be further presenting to you is something better. What I'll be doing is , to put it simply, making it so that the point that you travel to will become the temporal loci. Think of it like this, instead of you traveling from point A to Point B, the point A itself will be changing its coordinates. That is to say, the ' Future ' that you came from won't exist and instead, it'll be like you were always at the time when I send you as that'll be the ' Present '. This'll also prevent the Will Of The World from interfering, so there's that added bonus. "

Shido took a deep breath and said, " So returning to one week prior is my second option. What's my third ? " Nyarlothep smiled and said, " That is similar. However, instead of sending you one week prior, I'll be sending you nearly a year in the past. That is to say, nearly a week before you left on your trip for Arubi island and met the Yamai sisters. However, both this as well as the last option have one fatal flaw. A problem that persists consistently. " Shido raised a brow and curiously inquired, " What's that ? " Nyarlothep's demeanor changed in an instant. His gaze became cold and uncaring, as if he was looking down on him. He replied in a tone as cold as ice and said, " The problem is YOU. It is the fact that Shido Itsuka is WEAK. " His words weren't a threat, they weren't a mockery, they were a simple assertion. A fact . A truth. Nothing more, nothing less.

Shido felt as if he was standing against a mighty beast who could crush his existence at any second. And considering that the one in front of him was one of the strongest beings in the Cosmos, it wasn't a wrong analogy. However, he himself wasn't going to give up so easily. Gritting his teeth, he replied, " And ? What do you want me to do about that ? " Suddenly, all the tension in the air vanished in an instant as Nyarlothep had a wide grin plastered on his face as he said, " Why , I just wanted to see whether you have the will and the courage to actually snatch that strength that you desire ! Mark my words kiddo, strength is something that either you're born with, or you have to spend years accumulating drop by drop slowly. And if you can't do that, like opportunity and everything else in life, you have to be ready to snatch it with your own hands. And now that you have shown your resolve, I'm willing to add a few additional benefits. Think of it like.... Hmmm.... Let's just say choosing a dialogue option that unlocks a hidden ending in a visual novel. "

Nyarlothep smiled and said, " Option Four. I will still send you nearly a year in the past. However, this time, it'll be different. I shall grant you strength. Strength beyond your wildest dreams. Strength that will make the gods themselves bow down to you. But the question is..... ". Nyarlothep's face regained a bloodthirsty expression once again as he grinned madly and continued, " What are you willing to sacrifice in exchange for this power ? " Shido didn't hesitate for a single second as he answered, " Anything. As long as it only harms me, I am willing to give up everything that I have to save them all. " Nyarlothep's grin widened as he asked ,
" Anything ? Your life ? Your memories ? Your emotions ? Your very EXISTENCE ?! " With a resolute expression, Shido merely said, " I Am. " Nyarlothep's grin somehow widened even more than what was perhaps anatomically possible as he outstretched his hand towards Shido. As Shido shook his hands, Nyarlothep replied joyfully as he said, " Well then kid, you've got yourself a deal. "

Nyarlothep got up and gestured to Shido to follow him. As both of them continued their pacing, Nyarlothep spoke up and said, " Before we begin with the process, let me give you an overview of all the powers that you'll be receiving. First and foremost, I'm going to replace the circuits that you have. As you may know, individuals capable of harnessing the Mystic arts are classified as either Warriors or Mages. Whenever a Fool awakens, if they do not already possess either meridians or Magic Circuits depending upon their position as either Warriors or Mages, or if they're of a lower quality than specified, they receive a replacement upon their awakening. The circuits or meridians that are granted to Fools are some of the best in the Cosmos, surpassing even some of the gods in Heaven. Considering the world from which the other abilities I'm going to give you from, the Barthomeloi's would probably eat their hearts out in jealousy. Of course, you probably don't understand what I'm saying, but don't worry, once the process is complete and you get a few new memories, you'll understand everything. But then again, it isn't even worth comparing the circuits from that Branch because of that bitch Gaia. Bitch was so afraid of humans becoming powerful that she wanted to prevent humans from ever accessing magecraft. However, considering that she couldn't just take away Magic, she did the next best thing and made it so that all individuals would be born with fragmented circuits instead of the naturally occurring singular unit like there is everywhere else in the Cosmos. This thereby greatly decreases their capabilities as the Magi are essentially working with a patchwork system instead of a proper circuitry. That Bitch even prevents humans from cultivating to prevent humans from ascending to godhood.Just the advantages of being an Abstracta with a Reality Marble I
suppose. "

While Shido was still confused by some of the words as the later part of Nyarlothep's words flew right over his head, Nyarlothep paid no attention to him as he continued saying, " However, I'm not going to give you the publicly available resources. I'm going to give you a few more benefits. I'm going to give you the ' Vermilion Phoenix Circuits ' . These are the highest quality circuits available in the Cosmos. Even the Heavenly Emperor himself has these same circuits. Their output even surpasses the energy capacity of things like Dragon Cores or Divine Cores. Not only that, they also have the added benefit of being able to reconstruct themselves as long as your soul is intact. And considering that a person , you know stops existing once their soul is destroyed, it is pretty good of a deal. Not only that, after reconstructing themselves, the circuits become stronger than their previous form. So you don't have to worry about some gun wielding asshole destroying your circuits , turning you into a wheelchair bound cripple and your wife being cuckolded by a dead  guy. "

Shido narrowed his eyes and said,
" You said the only reason I'm getting these benefits is because I'm related to Rhadamanthus, who's your close friend. So essentially, the reason for why I'm getting special treatment is because of nepotism. Correct ? " Nyarlothep scoffed and said, " And ? It's not like you yourself are against it or anything. You're getting an opportunity, snatch it without any complaints. Besides, after observing humans for so many Yugas, I've learned that humans don't really hate corruption or nepotism, they just hate the fact that they're not being benefited by it. " Shido shrugged and said, " Fair enough. I was just curious. "

Nyarlothep continued speaking and said, " Along with that, I'll be doing two very special things. Firstly, I'll be turning you into a Pharaoh. However, unlike the other Pharaohs, you will be different. They were mere demigods. You however, will be a True God. " Shido had a confused expression as he said, " I don't really understand.... " Nyarlothep nodded in understanding and replied, " Well, you see, once upon a time, in a dimension far far away, there was a pantheon of Gods. The chief god of the pantheon made it so that a fraction of his divine essence would be present in the Kings that would rule over the masses. Everything was going nice and fine. However, then came a little old Abstracta called Alaya-Chan. She was the collective will of Humanity's desire to survive. And she had decided that this so-called great civilization had fulfilled its purpose and would have to fade away into obscurity. And so she chose a young man called Moses as her representative. To ensure the completion of her goals, Alaya-Chan sent a few troubles at the Pharaoh. A bit of ice cubes, some colouring in the water, a little bit of a pest control problem, a few pimples for everyone, and doing something that resulted in the property rights going from the first child to the second for every Egyptian. And as you could imagine, the Egyptian pantheon wasn't exactly happy with all this. But it's kinda hard to fight against an entity which is all of Humanity itself. So they did the next best thing. They couldn't ensure their survival, but they could at least ensure the survival of their civilization so that it wouldn't at least fade away into obscurity. So , as a final ' Fuck You ' , the entire pantheon came to a common consensus and immolated themselves, essentially destroying their existence to the point that they couldn't even exist as divine spirits in the reverse side. In exchange however, they were able to halt Alaya's efforts completely, along with forcefully enforcing a Quantum Time Lock upon the temporal loci, thereby ensuring that Alaya couldn't destroy Egyptian civilization without threatening all of Human History. Because of this, technically speaking, Ozymandias was the last True Pharaoh as he was the last one with the true essence of Ra. After him, none of the Pharaohs had true divine essence, but only gained a minor divinity simply because the people still looked up to them and believed they were incarnations of Gods, blissfully unaware that they were already dead. This was the same case as Iskandar gaining a minor divinity simply because people thought he was the son of Zeus. I have the remnant fragments of his Divinity. Using the power from the Collective Unconscious, I'm going to fuse it with your soul, thereby making you the God Ra. And don't worry, your consciousness will still be your own, as this is just the leftover remnant, so it can't influence you in any major way. It's just like you gaining a few new awesome powers and becoming immortal ! "

Shido was once again confused as he said, " I kinda lost you at the end once again. Mind giving me a condensed version ? " Nyarlothep rolled his eyes and said, " Tldr, you're going to become a God but you'll still be you. " Shido sighed and said, " Was it that difficult to simply say that ? " Nyarlothep looked at him with a deadpan expression and said, " Come on kid, let me have some fun. Most of the people that I meet are old monsters who have loved for millennia and don't require any explanations on anything. So it's boring to talk with them. After all, the best part about being a Villain is the monologuing, isn't it ?! And how rarely do you get to monologue after being on the good side ? " Shido merely rolled his eyes as he said in his mind, " Are all the powerful entities in the Cosmos god damn drama queens ? "

Not paying attention to Shido , Nyarlothep continued speaking and said, " Another thing that I want to tell you is that congratulations, you have awakened the Cursed Bloodline ! You already have all knowledge about it from your awakening, it's just that it has yet to be integrated into your existence, something that I'll be doing soon. Though I will remind you that it's a low purity bloodline, so you only get the basic package like being able to regenerate your entire self from a single cell though you can't do it instantly and even with sufficient mana , you'll require at least a few days for complete regeneration. Your cells are also able to turn anything that they make contact with into more of them, but it will take at least anywhere ranging from a few seconds to a few hours to turn something with a significant conceptual weight like a noble phantasm as compared to something like a piece of rock which can be done instantly. Also, even if your physical body is completely destroyed, your soul can persist indefinitely without an anchor. That is something all members of the Cursed Bloodline have , regardless of bloodline purity, so no surprises there. Also, you'll never age and never grow old. In short, you get the standard issue kit, nothing more. So no plot armour for you, after all, you aren't Rhadamanthus. But then again, that asshole doesn't need plot armour because he himself is the plot armour ! Seriously, that bastard has complete conceptual immunity to everything just because all the concepts are part of the Cosmos and as such, are unable to affect him or be afflicted upon him and since he's not part of it, he's fucking immune to every Fucking thing ! Fuck this shit ! The Cosmos isn't fair at all ! "

Shido sighed once again seeing Nyarlothep rant about some random stuff that he couldn't make sense of. And truth be told, he wasn't interested in the slightest. He wasn't here to ' Uncover the secrets of the Cosmos ' or some bullshit. No, he was just here to get powers and save his family. His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Nyarlothep staring at him. Nyarlothep fake coughed and continued as he said, " Another thing that I'll be doing is that I'll be altering reality so that you will now be the Son Of a Dragon, making you a Half Dragon, along with your Cursed Bloodline. Well, practically speaking, you will be a full fledged Dragon as the Cursed Bloodline is sort of a homogeneous component that doesn't exactly count towards your species, so you'll be a full fledged Dragon for all intents and purposes. However, you won't just be the son of any random cheap dollar store Dragon. Nope ! You will be the son of the Keeper of Das Rheingold, the one who was slain by the great Hero Siegfried in the tale of The Nibelungenlied, He whose glory was sung in the Volsung Saga, Defeated by Sigurd, the descendant of Wotan, for you shall be the Son Of Fafnir, the Evil Dragon ! "

Shido pondered over it for a moment before asking, " But wouldn't that make it easy to one shot me with the sword Balmung and what was that other sword that Sigurd used.... Oh yeah, gram ! Also, one thing I never understood was how the hell did two guys manage to kill the same dragon ? I would assume that dragons like humans are supposed to, you know, Die When They Are Killed ?! So how the fuck did this happen ? " Nyarlothep smirked and replied, " Well, you'll be the Son Of Fafnir, not Fafnir himself, so Balmung and Gram will affect you as only a little bit more than they would to someone who had Draconian attributes like Elizabeth Bathory and such. And as for how both the people killed the same being, well, Sigurd was the guy who got the short end of the stick as he was the one who faced Fafnir first. At that time, Fafnir was at his strongest. Though Sigurd did have the better equipment, considering that he had Gram, the greatest demonic sword that rivals the greatest holy sword Excalibur. And Sigurd was indeed successful in slaying Fafnir, but the thing was, Fafnir was a conceptual entity who didn't just end so easily. So yes, while he did disappear for a while, he was merely dispersed in a manner of speaking. However, as you might expect, he was severely weakened by this. It was the same as a god going from a real god to a mere divine spirit. But at the end of the day, it's still a Fucking powerful dragon, so credit where credit is due. But coming back to topic , this will bolster your already ridiculous mana capacity caused by your circuits to absolutely ' Fuck The Rules, I Do As I Wish ' levels. But wait ! There's More ! Alongside all this bullshit, the thing is , you're a high ranking Fool ! And that means that you can siphon off energy directly from every soul connected to the collective unconscious. Of course, the energy that is normally siphoned from a single soul is extremely, extremely low, like the amount of water present on a needle head after you dip it's tip in the ocean levels of low. However, considering that you're extracting it from every soul in every planet in every planetary system in every galaxy in every galactic cluster in every dimension in every Branch in the Cosmos, it's fucking staggering how much it is . Though you still have to be careful. After all, that energy is first brought into your reserves, which are ridiculously large considering that you will have both a dragon core and the Vermilion Phoenix Circuits. However, do remember that despite this , their limits are finite, whereas the energy is nearly infinite. So if you try to channel more than s certain threshold before your soul is strong enough, the same thing will happen when you try to fill a cheap dollar store balloon with a firefighter's hose, it'll fucking explode. "

Shido took a deep breath and said, " I'll be honest. I don't understand half the stuff that you're talking about, but even I can understand that it's pretty important stuff that you're giving to me. So I'm most certainly thankful for that. But even I can't help but ask, do you have to be so dramatic about this ? '' Nyarlothep smirked and said, '' Of course I do ! If I don't, then who'll take the job of the sexy , devilishly charming , and smooth talking gatekeeper of the Akakshic Records ? Philemon sure as hell isn't going to do that since that guy's an uptight asshole who's a stickler for rules. So someone has to step up to this responsibility, don't you think ? Besides, I'm not that bad of a guy ! The only reason I've got a bad reputation is because years ago I was pissed that no one knew about me , so I got into Lovecraft's head and made him write what was essentially a fanfiction involving me and some of my Oc's like Azathoth , Yog Sothoth and Shub-Niguratth. Of course, humanity was so invested in these stories that like a modern day mythos, these beings came to life and started existing. Of course, these beings were born of belief, and as such, are hilariously weak against a powerful Abstracta like me, to the point that it's not even worth me going out of my way to hunt them. The only one I actually hunted down was the fake Nyarlothep because there's no way in hell I was going to let him continue existing because Philemon be damned , my existence is trademarked ! No one copies and gets away with it ! "

Nyarlothep continued speaking and said, " Another thing, and a rather special thing that I'll be granting you is the opportunity for one summon from the Throne of Heroes. However, you won't be summoning a Servant. Instead, you'll be summoning a fully incarnated Heroic Spirit. And just because I'm such a nice guy, I'll be adding a new feature to the ritual. The summon will never age and will be able to heal minor wounds as long as they are supplied with appropriate mana. Though, don't expect the Heroic Spirit to just regrow limbs. Unless they're someone like Heracles, that's not going to happen. Oh, but if you have the limbs intact, you can fix it with a little bit of assistance from healing magecraft. Not only that , the summoned Heroic Spirit will also have a magic core, or to be more precise, something more akin to a Magical Energy Reactor , though differing in application and being able to extract energy from the surroundings. The summon will be a living being mind you, so it won't need mana for existing, just for using any magecraft if they're a Magus or know magecraft or if they want to use noble phantasms. And on the topic of their noble phantasms, you can still establish a connection to the Summon and lend them your near limitless energy. Another thing that I'll be doing is separating their existence. I'm taking inspiration from Xemnas's methods, but I'm adding a lot more things. Essentially, I'll be solving the discrepancies that arise during summoning. For example, if you're summoning Gill De Rais, if you're compatible with his Saber counterpart, essentially, his soul in the Throne will split and the version of the one that you'll be getting will be similar in personality to his Saber counterpart, but he'll be a complete Heroic Spirit. And of course, as an incarnated Heroic Spirit, they won't have those stupid class restrictions. However, do remember that this will only work if there exists massive differences between the past and future selves of the individual, that is to say that the Heroic Spirit underwent massive shifts in his personality and ideals in the later part of their lives. So for instance, if you summon Diarmuid, his soul won't split just to let you have the version where you get him with Gae Dearg and Gae Buidhe. No , that doesn't count as a difference because there's no ideological differences between his saber and lancer variant. So instead, you'll just get Diarmuid Ua Duibhne complete equipped with both Gae Dearg and Gae Buidhe along with him also possessing Moralltach and Beagalltach. So no splitting here. In short, I'm going to essentially erase one Heroic Spirit from the Throne just to help you. Aren't I a nice
guy ?! "

Shido had a confused expression on his face once again as he asked, " What's a Heroic Spirit ? What's a noble phantasm ?! And what the hell does Diarmuid have to do with all this ? Wait, wasn't he a knight under some guy named Finn McCool ? I think I remember him from school as we had a short story where he and his wife trick some giant.... " Nyarlothep sighed and said,  " Look , it's too complicated to explain, just know that you'll be summoning someone who's either a mythological figure or a powerful historical figure. For example, Diarmuid, Finn McCool, Okita Souji, Anansi, Arjuna, Richard the Lionheart, or Emperor Nero Claudius. Though if you do indeed summon her, good luck keeping with her antics . " Shido had his mouth wide open as he said, " Wait, her ?! Nero was a woman ?! Were the people in the past blind or just liars ?! What's next , you're gonna tell me that Okita from Japan was a woman too ? " Though Shido had spoken the last sentence as rhetoric, seeing the nervous smile on Nyarlothep's face made him feel as if some part of his mind, the one responsible for logic, had somehow broken.

Before Shido could answer Nyarlothep with some cheeky retort, Nyarlothep's expression hardened and became serious as he spoke up and said, " But I digress. We're straying off topic. I think it's time we get to the fun stuff. Up until this point, everything that I said I'll be giving you was just the appetizers. This however, while not the main course, will be a side dish that's just as important to the main course. It's complementary to it. Besides, good things always come in a package of three, don't you think ? "

Nyarlothep grinned as he continued speaking and said, " Despite all your powers, you are still going to be lacking a rather fundamental thing, that being combat experience. After all, even if you hand a divine construct in the hands of someone who doesn't know how to use it, it's no different from handing it over to a monkey. I'll be fixing that. What I'll be doing is that I will fuse with your soul the remnants of two other souls. And since they are mere remnants and not the actual things along with the fact that I have refined them, it won't affect your soul in any negative manner. You'll relive their lives and gain their memories. And sure, a few aspects of their personalities may end up influencing your own self, but it'll be extremely minor, kinda like one percent or something. So no worries there. "

Shido raised a brow and asked, " So who are these souls ? " Nyarlothep smirked and said, " Well, nothing to major, just a third rate Magus by the name of Kiritsugu Emiya who had a foolish dream of being a Hero Of Justice and the other being a simple Priest named Kotomine Kirei, a man who had simple pursuits in life. Staying at his wife's side in her final moments, taking care of children and homeless blonde men alike and of course, simply enjoying cooking and eating mapo tofu. " Shido simply nodded and said, " It's fine. I accept this. " Nyarlothep smirked and asked curiously, " Oh ? You aren't even going to worry about the two people whose souls you're going to be fused with ? No background checks ? People do background checks even when they're giving out something as simple as a plot of land to a tenant and here you are, not even worrying about the people you'll be fusing with. Seems a bit reckless, doesn't it , kid ? "

Shido scoffed at him and said, " Oh please. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that these guys aren't Saints at best and I'd bet that at least one of these assholes is an unrepentant murderer. " Nyarlothep raised a brow and inquired, " Oh ? What brought you to that conclusion ? '' Shido clicked his tongue and replied, " You said that these people's souls were going to improve my combat skills. Had these been some good or even morally acceptable people, you would have at least told me about their achievements, like winning some war or fighting against some mighty beast or gods or some shit like that. Because let's be brutally honest here, what you're doing here, blabbering about them is essentially the same as a salesman trying to sell you a product, with the only difference being that in this case, I need the product, so perhaps a pacemaker would be an appropriate example ? Regardless, you did neither of these , and instead were blabbering about mundane things like their likes and such. Something shady's definitely going on. '' Nyarlothep smiled as he said, " And you aren't the least bit worried about it ? '' Shido scoffed once again and said, " Of course not. What's the worst that you can do ? Kill me ? I've already died thousands of times. Besides, you're contractually obligated to help me save all of my family as per agreed upon in our contract. This room is part of the Collective Unconscious. That means that any agreements made here involving a Fool are enforced by the Will Of The World, even if the other individual is an Abstracta like you. So it's not like I have much to worry about. Besides, I think I can say with confidence that I crossed the line known as recklessness when I agreed to your conditions and entered the Cosmic equivalent of The Deal With The Devil. Do your worst Nyarlothep. "

The feral grin on Nyarlothep's face widened as he said, " Oh I will kid. I definitely will. " Nyarlothep then took a deep breath to calm himself. It was rarely that he ever got so excited over a new Fool, but then again, considering the circumstances that the kid in front of him was going to be thrust into, how could he not be ? Regardless, he put on his fake mask of nonchalance and professionalism and said, " Coming back to our point, the third thing that I'll be giving you is the most important. I'll be giving you the ability called tracing. Projection magecraft, as a matter of fact. Let me give you a bit of perspective, kid. There was once a foolish young man who had a simple dream of being a ' Hero Of Justice ' . Unfortunately for the kid, he was but a mere human with no great natural born talents and mediocre magic circuits. He couldn't even do something as simple as using a basic elemental spell. However, this kid was zealous, too zealous perhaps. He turned a useless skill called ' Gradation Air ' , something which could at best only serve the purpose of making a fork in case you had forgotten one for picnic or something. He however, turned this useless spell into something that enabled him to go toe to toe against great Heroes and demigods of the past alike. This man was Shirou Emiya, son of Kiritsugu Emiya. You will be inheriting his techniques. However, Shirou was limited to tracing Swords due to his Origin most of the time. However, you won't be having that. You on the other hand, shall have the Origin and Element of that no one throughout the Cosmos has ever had , The All Encompassing Aleph. It will enable you to trace anything as long as it carries the concept of ' Existing ' and ' Object '. The change of your Origin will be carried out by me. Will you accept it, knowing the importance that one's Origin has on one's self ? "

Shido took a deep breath and said, " I am. I understand that I am no Higher Being and as such, altering my Origin has the potential to drastically alter my personality. However, if my information about the fact that the ' Arcana Zeroth ' prevents me from having a predetermined fate or destiny, then it shouldn't affect my life too much, correct ? " Nyarlothep nodded his head and said, " Yes. Certainly, you will notice minor changes in your personality, but nothing that will affect your future actions. After all, Fools are the ones who have the least amount of influence from the Root on them right after the Higher Beings, who are outright Beyond its scope. You'll certainly feel a tug of sorts making you act in a certain way, but it should be fine. "

With a heavy sigh, Shido nodded and said, " I have no regrets then. Do it. " Nyarlothep nodded in agreement. However, he had a sudden look of horror on his face before he could continue. Shido, worried by this , asked him , " What happened ? Is there something wrong ?! " Nyarlothep nodded his head vigorously and said, " Well, the integration of Shirou's skills and changing your Origin, bloodline, and every other thing was going to be done by me all at the same time. However, I accidentally forgot to take consent from Shirou Emiya to grant his powers to you. In case you didn't know , Philemon made it a rule that in case I would take something which falls under the category of information, like a spell or a technique , and the inventor happens to be a human , I must take expressed permission from at least one of the incarnations of said Humans, provided that the said incarnation too possesses the same skill or technique. And I forgot to take permission from Emiya...."

Hearing this, Shido paused momentarily before finally facepalming. He internally thought , " This ?! This was the guy who's not only one of the people in charge of the Collective Unconscious but also tasked with protecting the Akakshic Records ?! Was the Cosmos really running that low on interns that they had to make due with him ?! " Seeing the looks of disappointment and pity in Shido's eyes for him, Nyarlothep flinched and released a nervous chuckle as he said, " Well, that's not really much of an issue you see ! Since this place is in a separate temporal axis, I can go and contact him, get his approval and not even a second will have passed from your perspective ! "

Before Shido could say anything, Nyarlothep had already stepped inside a portal, leaving Shido alone.....

Location : ???

In a vast expanse of emptiness, a single white sphere of light shone as it was surrounded by two rings. However, amidst the emptiness, a well dressed man emerged and started walking towards the sphere as he said, " Heya , Alaya-Chan ! It's a Me, A-Nyarlothep ! " The sphere of light condensed as it took a humanoid form and took the appearance of a blonde young woman. The woman bowed down respectfully to Nyarlothep and said, '' Greetings, Lord Nyarlothep. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. May I ask you why I have the pleasure of meeting you ? " Nyarlothep smirked and said, '' Well, unfortunately for today, I'm on official business. I actually wanted to make a deal with your favourite toy- sorry , I meant employee. Can I speak with him ? I'm going to take permission to use his craft and in exchange, I'm going to grant him freedom from your influence. "

Normally, there wasn't a being who had the audacity to tell Alaya , the Collective Will Of Humanity, that they were going to take away one of its Counter Guardians right to her face. However, the person in front of her was not only strong enough to do so, it was quite literally laughably easy to do so for him. The only thing that prevented Nyarlothep from destroying her was the fact that due to her nature as an Abstracta, it required for him to wipe out all of Humanity in that Branch to kill her, something Lord Philemon certainly wouldn't allow. Maintaining a calm expression, Alaya spoke up and said, " Surely you jest , Lord Nyarlothep. After all, the contract with the Gatekeepers Of The Akakshic Records clearly states that - "

Nyarlothep interrupted Alaya and said,
" Yes ,yes, we aren't supposed to interrupt with your actions as long as you ensure humanity's survival, but the circumstances are a bit special currently. Besides, I'm not taking away your boy-toy for free. Let's just say I'm going to recommend a certain someone who's going to make all your Counter Guardians look third rate in comparison. " Saying this, Nyarlothep handed her a Mnemosyne orb, a common tool used by fools to share memories and information. Taking the orb , the orb glowed dimly as the information within it flowed through Alaya's mind.

As the process was completed, in a rather rare instance, one could clearly see fear being clearly visible on the Abstracta's visage. Calming herself, Alaya asked in an incredulous tone, " You want to make Rhadamanthus act as a Counter Guardian ?! The Butcher Of The Gods to work under me ?! The being who destroyed entire BRANCHES for fun ?! The Being who made the Herrscher so terrified that they fled and went into hiding ?! Are you Fuc- "

Before Alaya could continue, Nyarlothep interrupted her with an annoyed expression on his face and said, " Calm down. He's definitely got a lot softer than what he used to be in the past. Besides, there are several reasons why I think he will agree to work beside you. Not as your corporate slave like the Counter Guardians, but more like a hired intern who you better treat with respect or he'll kill you in more ways than you can imagine. But the first reason that he'll work as a pseudo Counter Guardian is because that asshole loves murder , especially wiping out large sections of human population. As you may be familiar, the life of a Counter Guardian takes its toll on the psyche as you're literally murdering people by the billions. But not this asshole ! This asshole murders people by the thousands by making them dance to their deaths as their bodies break apart and degrade on a cellular level. Of course, this isn't a perfect match. After all, he hates Humanity but not individual humans. He thinks that humans as individuals have great potential, even more so than gods but the moment they form civilizations and come together, they turn into a breed of maggots. So he'll happily listen to you if you ask him to erase a few countries off the world map, but if he finds a human he thinks worthy of living, he'll Fucking fight against the Heaven's themselves to save them. The second reason he'll help you is because that guy hates, HATES the existence known as Gaia. His world's Gaia was responsible for the deaths of his family, so he pretty much hates EVERY Gaia throughout the Cosmos. He's even trying to eliminate every incarnation of the being known as Gaia throughout the Cosmos, even if she's a mere goddess as compared to an Abstracta. Is it irrational to do so ? Yes . Is it stupid ? Absolutely. Is it something that Rhadamanthus would do ? Oh you bet that he will. That's the sort of asshole he is. And he's not even the slightest bit concerned about morality, so go crazy with his assignments. As long as you don't try to manipulate or control him, he'll listen to you. And don't even try to threaten his family, even as a joke. Or better yet, you know what ? Don't even mention his family. You'll be safer that way. "

Sighing to herself, Alaya replied, " Fine. I think I can manage those guidelines. Besides, getting the support of the Abhorrence Of The Paramount Dao in exchange for one Counter Guardian is a good deal anyways. Please follow me. " Saying this, Alaya walked towards a portal as Nyarlothep followed suit.

Location : Unlimited Blade Works

Shirou, or rather Archer, as he simply preferred to call himself, was currently seated on a small patch of dirt within his Reality Marble. Around him were present countless swords, all part of his Reality Marble. Truth be told, he really didn't know how his Reality Marble existed indefinitely without dispersing, but it was all because of Alaya. Besides, he was a third rate Magus even when alive , so it wasn't like he was going to uncover the secrets of how the Collective Will Of Humanity did things. Suddenly however, he sensed two presences appear in his Reality Marble. The first was a familiar one, his sweet,kind, compassionate and caring Boss. The second one was still a new one though. Did he get a new co-worker ?

He got up as he saw Alaya walking towards him, accompanied by a man dressed in formal clothing. He mentally clicked his tongue seeing that Alaya had once again taken the appearance of a familiar blonde king. For reasons beyond him, Alaya found a strange sense of satisfaction impersonating Artoria whenever speaking to him, especially when giving him his assignments. Countless years had passed, yet he was still unable to accept it.

Seeing his rather predictable reaction, Alaya smiled and said, " Good to see that you're doing well, Shirou. Relax, I'm not sending you on another mission. Rather, someone actually wanted to meet you. " Alaya gestured to the man beside her. While Archer couldn't say why, every sense of him was screaming danger upon seeing that man. And considering that he was accompanying his boss, he sure as hell was no ordinary being. The man beside Alaya spoke up in a polite manner and said, " Greetings Mr. Emiya. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. While you may not be aware of it, I have been a rather long time fan of yours. Oh, and don't worry about your instincts. I'm just a mere Gatekeeper. Nothing too special. Though I will say, the thing that I safeguard is something that a lot of individuals from your world were trying to reach , yet were unsuccessful in doing so. That place and the attempts to reach it are also indirectly tied to the greatest period of conflict in both your as well as your guardian's lives. Ring any bells ? "

Emiya had a look of confusion on his face. However, that confusion soon turned into an expression of horror as he realized the implications of the words of the man in front of him. The man smirked and said, " Yes , Mr Emiya. That is correct. I am Nyarlothep, one of the Gatekeepers Of The Akakshic Records, or as the Magi of your world call it, The Root. " Seeing his reaction, Alaya smiled in amusement and said, '' Don't worry about it too much, Shirou. Lord Nyarlothep is simply here because he has.... A contract for you. And you should know a thing or two about contracts now, don't you ? "

Emiya took a moment to compose himself and said, " And what does the being who safeguards the root need from a third rate Magus like me ? And on that note, what the hell are you supposed to protect the Root from ? " Nyarlothep shrugged and said, " Look kid, there are things out there that make the Root's powers look like child's play in comparison. But that's beyond your pay grade, so don't worry about it. And as for why I'm coming to you, you see, you're the guy who created projection magecraft. And I kinda want to give this magecraft to another person for..... reasons, let's just say. However, the thing is , my superior, Philemon has established these rules, that everyone, including myself has to follow. And one of them states that in case beings like us want to use someone's powers and that someone happens to be a human, we have to take their expressed permission and compensate them fairly. I know, it sounds stupid, and it is, but the thing is , Philemon really, really has a soft spot for Humanity, so he's like a Mama bear looking out for them, with the only difference being that said Mama bear predates the Cosmos and holds enough power to destroy it all. He's a genuine Fucking simp for Humanity. But we're getting off topic. To reiterate, here's the trade deal. I'll receive permission to grant someone else your powers of projection magecraft. In exchange, you'll gain freedom from Alaya's contract and will be placed in the Throne of Heroes. That's it. No loopholes, no hidden terms, nothing. This is as cut and dry as you can get. "

Emiya paused momentarily to ponder over Nyarlothep's words. Certainly, the cynical part of him was unsure about his words, but one thing he could say for certain, it couldn't get any worse than his current conditions. He was already in hell. Didn't get any worse than this. Sighing, Emiya spoke up and said in a begrudging tone and said, " Fine. I accept. " Nyarlothep smiled hearing his words and manifested a gift wrapped present box in his hand. Handing it to Emiya, he said, " Excellent choice, Mr Emiya ! All you need to do now is open the box, and use what's inside it. As soon as you do, the contract between you and Alaya will end , and you'll be given a permanent addition to the Throne of
Heroes. "

While he was still skeptical about it, Emiya ultimately decided that it wasn't any use waiting for it. As he opened the box with a small knife, he saw that inside was another box, a Jack in the box to be precise. Not seeing any other option, as even tracing the box provided no results, either about its history or material, as if it simply did not exist, Emiya grabbed the hand crank on the box and spun it. Soon, the iconic and classic melody of ' Pop Goes The Weasel ' resounded through the air. After a few seconds had passed, a small doll popped out of the box. The doll was of a girl, who was dressed in red clothing and had her hair styled in twintails. Emiya immediately recognised the figure. How couldn't he ? It was of his old acquaintance, Rin tohsaka. Or at least it resembled her, as if it was made as a caricature for teasing her.

In a rare instance, a small smile appeared on his face. Even if his memories were missing and fragmented, he still was happy to be reminded of her. However, he was suddenly broken out of his thoughts when the sound of gears spinning could be heard. The doll raised one of its tiny arms and pointed towards him. Before he could respond, a rather familiar bright green projectile flew at his face, sending him flying through the several feet in the process. And of course, how could he NOT be familiar with it ? He had spent years of his life getting hit by it. It was of course, the trademark of the tohsaka, gandr shot. Well, technically speaking, he had endured it a few times from other people, but he couldn't help but associate it with anyone other than Rin.

As his body stated dispersing into golden particles, he could sense something that he had only dreamed for centuries, his connection with Alaya fading away. The moment would have been a lot more pleasant if not for the snickering of two distinct people just a few feet away. Before he could say anything, Nyarlothep gleefully said, " Before you ask, no , this wasn't required. I could have erased the connection with just a handshake, but I really didn't want to. After all, seeing an Emiya suffer is the best entertainment ! "

As his body was finally finishing dispersing into particles to the point that he was nearly translucent, Emiya took an action that would be his last action as a Counter Guardian. Still lying on the ground, he raised his head and glared at Nyarlothep. He then smirked and raised his right hand and showed Nyarlothep a finger. His middle finger to be exact. After he had finally disappeared, Nyarlothep merely chuckled at his antics. After all, how couldn't he ? It was always fun to see people who stood defiantly against him as opposed to cowering in fear and singing praises of him. He couldn't put into words how much he hated visiting Heaven because of this exact reason.

As the area around him had begun to disperse due to Emiya's absence, Nyarlothep smiled and gave a curt nod to Alaya and stepped through a portal , to return back to Shido.

Location : The False Velvet Room

Shido was left with his mouth wide open as Nyarlothep had just stepped through a portal, leaving him alone. Before he could say anything however, another portal opened through which Nyarlothep stepped out. Shido had an incredulous expression on his face as he was confused about what was happening. Before he could ask anything to Nyarlothep, Nyarlothep turned towards him and said, " Before you ask, I told you that temporal axis of this room is different from the outside, didn't I ? Here's a helpful tip for you kid. Time exists in harmony with space. They are intertwined with one another. Without space , time cannot exist. It is because of this that time as a concept only makes sense and exists inside of dimensions. In the region between the dimensions, that is the Dimensional Void, space doesn't exist and as such, neither does time. Certainly, you can indeed ' Introduce ' time in a limited region, but doing so requires an extremely high degree of control over the Law Of Time to the point that it's impossible for even most gods to do so. Unless you are a Higher Being, you're screwed. "

Nyarlothep then smirked and clapped his hands to gain Shido's attention as he said," But we're getting off track. Coming back to our point, I have established a deal with Shirou Emiya. I now have the permission to grant you his Projection magecraft. And I think that now we should begin our work. " Saying this, Nyarlothep snapped his fingers as light emerged from his other hand. In his hand, manifested a large golden chalice. The chalice was beautiful, as if it were an ornate piece of art, having a spot amongst the finest treasures of the world. However, in contrast to the image of beauty and grandeur, the chalice was filled to the brim with viscous, black liquid. The liquid looked similar to tar, only much , much blacker and somehow even more revolting. The liquid gave off a sense of ' Wrongness ' to him. It was difficult to put into words how disgusted he was by it, yet a part of his mind was also afraid of it. Instinctually, he couldn't help but taking a few steps back.

Seeing his reaction, Nyarlothep grinned and said, " As I was saying, I am going make all the changes that I mentioned to you. However, for us to begin , we need a ...... Kickstarter.... Yeah, let's go with that. So this is what we're going to use. " Gazing affectionately at the chalice in his hands, Nyarlothep continued speaking as he smiled and said, " As I was saying, the thing in my hands is a Grail, or at least a chalice that looks like the Grail. I thought it made the most thematic sense considering the powers that you'll be getting and the world from which they originate. The thing inside the Grail is something similar to a substance that we affectionately call the ' Grail Mud '. However, unlike the cheap and shitty copy made by Angra Mainyu and Tiamat, this here is the genuine deal, made here , right inside the Collective Unconscious ! As you may know, when a soul enters the Sea Of Souls for reincarnation, everything is washed away. It's Destiny, Fate, Sins, Good Deeds and of course, memories. This mud here is the manifestation of those sins. All you need to do is drink it, and I'll begin the process. The Sins Of All Of Humanity are the only thing that stands between you and your Salvation. Know very clearly that there is no shame in backing out now. You still have three options left. "

Shido gulped nervously as he took a deep breath to calm himself. He then walked towards Nyarlothep and took the Grail from his hands. Seeing this, Nyarlothep smiled. Staring at its contents for a few seconds, Shido took a deep breath once again and drank all of it in a single gulp. Words couldn't describe the sick sensation that was welling up inside him. As the world around him spun , he fell to his knees and spoke in a trembling tone and said, " What..... What..... happens now ?.... "

Nyarlothep stood beside Shido with a calm and vacant expression as he said,
" Now...? Shido Itsuka dies...... " As soon as he said this , Shido's body began to twitch and spasm as he puked out the black mud from his mouth. However, instead of vomiting it normally, the mud seemed to endlessly spew from his mouth as if it was coming out of a broken sewage pipe. His suffering however, did not just stop there. From his eyes, his ears , his nose, every orifice on his body spewed the same black mud that he had just consumed. Soon, he had started to drown in the mud that seemed to gather around him. How ironic. The one who had just moments prior consumed the Mud was now being consumed by the Mid itself. As he kept thrashing, the mud continued to increase. Soon, it became difficult to even distinguish his form from the mud itself. If not for the barely humanoid figure covered in Black Mud which was thrashing in it, it would have been difficult to even imagine that there was anything else other than the pool of mud present here.

Nyarlothep kept gazing intently at the pool of mud. He spoke with a solemn expression as he said, " Power Always Comes At A Price young man. You are now paying the price. And once the price has been extolled, the fates will open for you. All that will be left, is to see whether you truly have the strength to walk on the Path in front of you. Burning yourself for Salvation, or drowning yourself to fade away into obscurity to finally escape the cycle of suffering. What shall you choose ? Yet remember, ' Thy Chooseth This Fate Of Thy Own Free Will ...... ' "

And with that, the prologue is finally done ! This will be my second book, and it'll tie in to the other book, though it'll be a while till the characters from there make an appearance here. And yes, Shido will be summoning Servants. Yes, servants. Multiple. Who it is, that'll have to wait for the next chapter. Though trust me on one thing when I say this. This Shido is going to suffer. A LOT. ( What , you thought the Kiritsugu on the cover was for show ? Hell no. He's gonna suffer so much that even Kiritsugu will pity him . ) It's a crossover with Fate so how can we have the main character not suffer ? I know that you'll probably have a lot of doubts if you haven't read my other book , so feel free to ask any questions if you have. Until next time then !

Word count : 12661 words