The rooftop suddenly fell into silence.
Bound by the Chains of Heaven, Ereshkigal's face turned red as she stared blankly at the boy in front of her.
"You're… Nameless?"
Though he wasn't as tall as Nameless, and appeared much younger and more inexperienced than the battle-hardened one she remembered…
This person could wield the Chains of Heaven and gave off a familiar aura that etched itself into her memory.
Just this first encounter alone gave Ereshkigal a sense of fatal déjà vu.
"You've got the wrong person!"
Sanjiro gave an awkward yet polite smile.
She had finally managed to descend into the mortal world, only to be caught in this embarrassing state by him. This was truly awkward!
The worst part was, he couldn't even control the Chains of Heaven right now!
It really wasn't his intention to tie her up like this.
It was just that his companion Enkidu—who always held animosity toward Ishtar—sensed her presence and acted without hesitation.
The result: she was tightly bound and couldn't break free at all.
In truth, the effectiveness of the Chains of Heaven against true gods remains uncertain.
After all, this divine construct was forged by the gods themselves specifically to restrain Gilgamesh, a king with demigod heritage.
Its true strength lies in binding those with divinity—and while it's true that the stronger one's divine attribute, the greater the chains' effect, this power has only ever been proven against beings with divine lineage, not full-fledged deities.
Its true effectiveness shined against divine-attribute demigods.
Ishtar, who had possessed a vessel to descend, was a textbook demigod—completely vulnerable to the chains.
So Ishtar didn't hesitate to flee and swapped herself out with Ereshkigal.
Good grief, were they all just lining up to experience this bondage play?
"AAAHHHHHHH!"
Ereshkigal suddenly let out a shrill shriek like a prairie dog, finally realizing her current state.
She was so embarrassed she could explode on the spot.
She had crossed through time and space to arrive in the era where Nameless existed.
And upon seeing this youthful version of Nameless, it should have been a happy moment.
But why… why did they have to meet in this kind of situation?
This was all Ishtar's fault! That damn goddess had clearly set her up!
Ereshkigal silently swore to herself:
My dear sister… I'll make sure you walk through the Seven Gates again, strip you bare, and string you up for a beating!
You're dead meat, Ishtar!
"Uhm, if I say this isn't my fault… would you believe me?"
Sanjiro coughed lightly.
But before he could finish explaining—
The infamous Queen of the Underworld, feared by countless people, had fled once again.
She ran again…
The divine auras of two different gods faded simultaneously.
All that remained was a proud and aloof young lady, now unconscious.
"…Well, that's Ereshkigal for you. Shy and cute as always."
Sanjiro sighed softly.
Now there was absolutely no way to explain this reasonably.
If Ereshkigal thought he was deliberately teasing her, he'd definitely be blamed.
He reached down and touched the golden belt. "Enkidu, the gods are gone. You can release it now."
Buzz!
The golden chains tightly binding the girl instantly recoiled.
The golden light faded, transforming once more into an unremarkable belt.
"…Why does the position feel a little off…"
Sanjiro froze.
The belt was fastened to his pants, and the chain's head rested just below his abdomen.
If he thought about it in humanoid terms, that meant Enkidu's charming little face was…
Terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. He must not entertain such thoughts!
Who knew when Enkidu would return to normal?
Would it have to wait until Alaya released an exposé video about fighting Tiamat?
The Chains of Heaven hid all traces of presence. Without fully focusing, even he couldn't find its true nature.
Now, the remaining issue was how to deal with the aftermath here.
After thinking it over, Sanjiro simply picked up the unconscious troublemaker in his arms and returned all the power he'd drawn from her.
He also reinforced the seals a bit.
Each time he drew her power, it stirred up a portion of her original essence, so he had to reinforce the seal every time.
Holding this troublemaker was starting to feel like carrying a nuke—one wrong move and it would go off.
He was nearing his limit.
As for Rin…
Yeah, best let her stay unconscious for now.
Hopefully, when she realizes that all her precious gemstones were used up by that trash goddess, she'll still be able to maintain a shocked expression.
May Buddha, God, and the Jade Emperor bless her with good fortune~
After wiping away all traces of his presence, Sanjiro disappeared with the troublemaker in tow.
If he didn't leave now, that fox with a dog's nose would sniff him out!
Buzz~
Barely five seconds after his departure, another figure appeared on the rooftop.
Three fluffy golden tails gently swayed behind her.
She sniffed the air lightly, her golden eyes filled with curiosity and surprise.
"This scent… divine beings? Two of them?"
The newcomer was none other than the director of Fuyuki Academy City—
Tamamo-no-Mae!
She had rushed here the moment she sensed the overwhelming surge of divine energy.
However…
Everything seemed to have calmed down. All that remained was a disheveled girl lying on the ground.
"…What a curious little thing."
Tamamo carefully examined the girl.
This young girl had become the vessel for a divine descent—not just one, but two gods had come through her.
What exactly had happened earlier?
Tamamo sniffed again, trying to gather more information—only to suddenly catch a stench so foul she nearly retched.
The odor made her stomach churn and her soul recoil.
It was like a snake catching a whiff of realgar—utterly intolerable!
"That bastard… who did this?"
Tamamo was visibly annoyed.
The person who acted was someone she knew—so intimately familiar that she couldn't possibly be mistaken.
The problem was… there was no such person in her memory.
Who the hell was it?
Just then—
The unconscious girl finally stirred awake.
Tamamo immediately returned to her gentle expression and greeted her, "You're awake?"
"…What happened to me?"
Rin Tohsaka felt dizzy.
It was like she had just escaped a dream she couldn't wake up from—unable to control her body at all.
Her legs even trembled slightly from exhaustion.
Tamamo remained calm. "You were possessed by a divine being. Let me check your body's condition."
"Eh? A divine being?"
Rin was stunned.
Her muddled brain immediately connected the dots—
Could it have been that Ishtar who looked exactly like her?
Could she actually be the reincarnation of a goddess?
She looked at her disheveled clothes, and her mind went blank.
Just what had that goddess done using her body?
Rin quickly checked herself over and immediately turned pale, like she had seen the most horrifying thing imaginable.
"What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Tamamo asked with concern.
"…All my gemstones are gone! Not a single one left!!"
Rin clenched her jaw, nearly bursting into tears.
She'd saved money every day, cutting corners just to gather those precious gemstones—
And now, that garbage goddess had used them all up without leaving a single one behind!
Tamamo smiled lightly and reassured her. "That's a small issue. Once you properly complete the task of hosting Heroic Spirits, I'll provide you some gemstones as a research grant."
"Thank you, director!"
Rin froze, then quickly expressed her gratitude.
As long as she completed her work, she could earn more gemstones later!
This was totally worth it!
Tamamo-no-Mae then asked again,
"You, Illya, and Julian… you all want to recommend someone named Sanjiro—just an ordinary student—as the official representative for Heroic Spirit reception?"
===============
T/N:
Now that I think about it, I still haven't seen any scene in the anime/game where the Chains of Heaven bind a full fledged god in their true divine form.
So far, it only had been used on those who possess divine attributes—like demigods or heroes with divine blood—or gods who have descended via possession, manifesting as Divine Spirits/pseudo servants.
That's still a much higher rank than regular Heroic Spirits, but not quite the same as a true god appearing in full power.
So yeah, its effectiveness against an actual god-god remains kind of up in the air. Or this happened already but I didn't know it and forgot it already.
Tell me if I'm wrong for these.
Xiao~