A forge resembling an ancient garden stood solitary at the center of the wilderness.
The group arrived at this forge in complete silence.
"This is the chosen land, and at its heart lies the Furnace of the World," rlin guided them.
"By placing the Fairy of Paradise within it, the concept of the Holy Sword will be confird. At that mont, the Holy Sword of this era will be born, and every world shall be saved."
"But, in that case..." Fujimaru Ritsuka hesitated.
Even after sacrificing countless companions thus far, she could never grow accustod to such things.
To achieve victory, soone must inevitably be discarded.
Could a victory built upon such sacrifice truly be considered a victory?
Mash, standing beside her, wore a similar expression.
Artoria glanced at her blankly.
Then, she broke into a smile.
"It's alright. I've actually known this outco was inevitable for a long ti, so I've already prepared myself ntally. This way, both Britain and Pan-Human History will be saved. Isn't that wonderful?"
She offered her usual smile.
Not the fabricated smile she showed the villagers of Tintagel, but one born of her own will—a smile that genuinely wished to save Britain.
Her words left Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash unable to refute.
But Eiji was an exception.
In that mont, Artoria's smile overlapped with Cnoc na Riabh's from 2400 years ago.
That epheral expression, as if her very place in the world had been stolen, proliferated in his mind like bamboo shoots after rain.
"rlin, I have a question for you."
"What is it?"
"Is reforging the Holy Sword truly only about eliminating the divergence point between this Lostbelt and Pan-Human History?"
Eiji cast a sharp gaze toward rlin.
"Why do you ask?" rlin raised an eyebrow, smiling as he inquired.
"Ultimately, this Lostbelt will disappear sooner or later. Whether we eliminate the divergence point or not, the outco remains the sa. And if the purpose of eliminating the divergence point is to weaken the Cursed God, with you and here, there's no need for such asures, is there?"
Eiji articulated his suspicions step by step, with logical reasoning.
If he and rlin joined forces, he refused to believe they couldn't defeat the Cursed God!
Gudako, Mash, and Muramasa also grew pensive, turning doubtful glances toward rlin.
"Indeed, you make a valid point," rlin agreed with Eiji.
The Cursed God was undoubtedly fearso, but if Eiji launched a preemptive strike before the tide of curses erupted, it might be possible to defeat it head-on.
Ultimately, the reforging of the Holy Sword felt too abrupt, and its purpose remained unclear. They had only trusted the plan because rlin proposed it.
"In that case, there's no need for Artoria to sacrifice herself, right?" Fujimaru Ritsuka's eyes lit up as she hastily interjected.
"No, that won't do either," rlin promptly shattered her hopes.
"Honestly, I'd rather not say this, but since you've already noticed, I won't hide it any longer."
"The reason for having Artoria reforge the Holy Sword isn't about the Cursed God at all. It's to confirm the concept of the Holy Sword on present-day Earth!"
Gudako and Mash exchanged bewildered glances, their expressions clearly showing they didn't understand what was being said.
"Think carefully—what remains on Earth now?"
rlin wasn't impatient, instead gently guiding the two.
"Basically nothing is left."
Mash shook her head.
"That ans?!"
Fujimaru Ritsuka quickly caught on.
"Correct, nothing remains."
rlin nodded.
"No humans remain, no civilization remains—the oceans, mountains, and land have all been bleached away. This ans all concepts have vanished."
Yes.
This was the fundantal reason.
On the bleached Earth now, nothing remained.
Continents, oceans, the world's highest peak—everything had been erased in the bleaching.
This included humanity and civilization.
And concepts themselves originated from thousands of years of human civilization.
In the universe, concepts don't exist. In imaginary number space, concepts beco extrely faint. In the Inner Sea of the Planet, concepts beco distorted.
This is because concepts exist only where humanity exists! With humanity gone, naturally no concepts remain!
Naturally, the concept of the Holy Sword was also erased.
The one who carried out this series of actions called themselves the "Alien God."
As everyone knows, the Holy Sword possesses extraordinary special offensive power against external threats to Earth!
This inevitably leads to the speculation: Was the Alien God's purpose in bleaching the Human Order to erase the Holy Sword from its roots, eliminating the only thing that could threaten it from this planet?
Naturally, to counter the Alien God, the concept of the Holy Sword must be reestablished on the Earth's surface!
"Ultimately, the aning of reforging the Holy Sword isn't to weaken the Cursed God, but to reestablish the possibility of defeating the Alien God. That is the true purpose."
rlin revealed the truth.
"This... this is too much!"
Mash imdiately showed indignation.
"Isn't this forcing Artoria to sacrifice herself for our world?"
Fujimaru Ritsuka's expression also turned grim.
If it were for the sake of this Lostbelt world, at least it would be a worthy death.
But the purpose of making Artoria sacrifice herself was actually to save their own world!
Forcing soone to such extres was just like the Fairies—utterly disgusting!
"So, I didn't plan to tell you."
rlin spread his hands, looking completely innocent.
Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash simultaneously glared at him, as if not ntioning it ant it wouldn't happen!
rlin truly is rlin!
Scum!
"Artoria!"
At that mont, Muramasa suddenly cried out in alarm.
Everyone turned to look, just in ti to see a graceful figure stepping into the cosmic furnace ahead that resembled a starry sky.
Without any hesitation.
Without giving anyone a chance to stop her.
This young girl chose self-sacrifice in the most considerate way.
Within the cosmic furnace, invisible flas gradually ignited.
These weren't literal flas, but rather conceptual flas that slowly enveloped Artoria's figure. Using her experiences and Spirit Origin as materials, they confird the revival of a new concept.
"Tch!"
Muramasa's face instantly beca extrely agitated.
"rlin, let ask you! We just need to confirm the concept of the holy sword has been established, right?"
"Well, theoretically that's correct, but in this era we can't find anyone capable of forging a holy sword anymore. If we could directly forge the holy sword here, that would be the ideal outco."
"Hmph, I see!"
Muramasa was montarily stunned, then broke into silent laughter.
"Now it's ti for this old man to show his skills! Forging divine weapons has always been my specialty!"
Watching Muramasa laugh triumphantly.
Eiji's eyes glead with intensity.
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