Crossover Shipgirls: Building a Dimensional Empire from Scratch

Boom—

After delivering the final blow, Setsuna felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him.

He barely managed to land on the ground, his steps unsteady.

The other fleet girls and Servants deactivated their ship bodies and gathered around him with concern.

"How are you, Commander?"

"Are you hurt?"

Yat Sen supported him, steadying his posture.

"Uh, I'm fine. Just a bit tired."

Setsuna shook his head to clear it and handed the holy sword back to Artoria.

The Divine Ancestor's strength, amplified by the Holy Grail, had been unimaginably powerful. Setsuna had pushed his body to its limits, drawing heavily on the cube's energy. Using Artoria's holy sword had added an extra burden.

Only his unique compatibility with the foreign power systems allowed him to wield the holy sword effectively; most others wouldn't even be able to activate it.

"This singularity is now fully stabilized!"

Roman's holographic image appeared, his face brimming with excitement.

"You guys are incredible! That was so fast! Even faster than Orléans!"

"Truly unbelievable..."

The Roman Empire's summoned emperors, including its founding ancestor, had all been defeated.

The Holy Grail itself had been shattered by Setsuna's final strike.

With the singularity's anomalies resolved, the Roman Empire would no longer face destruction, and history could return to its original course.

"This was way tougher than last time. Jeanne Alter and Mordred were nothing compared to the Divine Ancestor."

"The King of Knights could handle those two with just a Command Spell, but here, we all had to pitch in."

Setsuna chuckled and shook his head.

He had expected a simple blitz through the singularity but ended up fighting an unexpectedly fierce battle.

"Ah, well done! When you return to Chaldea, I'll have a warm meal ready to welcome you," Da Vinci promised, waving warmly at the group.

"We'll finish up here, recruit a few more Servants, and head back," Setsuna replied.

[Ding—]

Suddenly, a system notification chimed.

[Congratulations, host! You have completed the hidden mission: Roman Conqueror.]

[You have defeated every Roman Emperor from the founding Divine Ancestor to the present. You are the undisputed Conqueror.]

[Rewards: Roman Spirit Summoning Tickets, Sword in the Stone.]

Whoosh—

A stack of golden talismans appeared in his hands.

The objects unmistakably resembled the summoning tickets from Fate/Grand Order.

Setsuna glanced at the description.

[Roman Spirit Summoning Tickets]

Your conquest of the Roman Emperors has been eternally recorded in the Throne of Heroes. All Servants affiliated with Rome will heed your call.

By using these tickets, you can summon any Roman Emperor or Heroic Spirit tied to Rome unconditionally.

Upon closer inspection, each ticket bore the image of a specific Servant.

Amor, Caligula, Astraea, Spartacus, Popess Johanna... even Romulus, whom he had just defeated.

Of course, Nero Claudius was absent—she was standing right next to him, staring at the summoning tickets in awe.

"Umu, does this mean you can summon an entire Roman army in the future?!"

"Uh... I'll figure out how to use these later..."

Setsuna rubbed his temples. Summoning someone like Popess Johanna or Astraea would be fine, but managing all those emperors would be a headache.

If they sat idle for too long, they'd likely start brawling with each other every other day.

"Maybe I'll have them help govern other worlds. They're emperors, after all—running a nation should be their forte."

After some thought, Setsuna decided that in the future, he could appoint the Divine Ancestor or Caesar as planetary governors for worlds he conquered.

Then, from his storage space, he pulled out the second reward and fell into contemplation.

It was a longsword, bearing some resemblance to the Sword of Promised Victory but featuring a more ornate design. The blade came with a scabbard adorned with intricate red-and-blue patterns, golden accents, and ruby embellishments.

[Sword in the Stone]

The golden sword of assured victory, also known as Caliburn, the symbol of kingship that King Arthur pulled from the stone.

Holding it halts the user's physical aging, preserving their appearance at their current age forever.

"..."

"Isn't this thing meant for Artoria?!" Setsuna exclaimed in disbelief.

The sword Artoria currently wielded, better known as the Sword of Promised Victory, had been crafted later by the Lady of the Lake, as guided by Merlin. This sword, however, was Caliburn—the ceremonial blade of young King Arthur.

When Artoria saw the Sword in the Stone, she was visibly shocked.

She hurried over, bowed her head slightly, and gently caressed the sword's blade, immediately recognizing its origin.

"Master, this was once my sword... though it was later damaged beyond repair."

"How did you manage to obtain it?!"

"Why am I even getting this? Isn't this supposed to be Rome's story?" Setsuna scratched his head.

"Could it be because I used the King of Knights' sword to win the fight earlier, so the system gave me this as a companion piece?!"

[This is a symbol of your bond with your first Servant.]

The system's response was curt.

"...Fine."

Setsuna accepted the explanation.

Since he didn't have a reliable weapon of his own, whether it was his mecha or the Eternal Snowfall, they were all tech-oriented tools. He couldn't keep borrowing Artoria's sword every time.

The Sword in the Stone, also a symbol of kingship, felt fitting for his identity.

Balancing science and magic was the only way to achieve comprehensive strength.

He stood, giving the sword a light swing.

Compared to Artoria's projected holy sword, this one had a heavier weight and felt more attuned to him. Channeling magical energy through it would yield even greater destructive power.

"Not bad. That fight wasn't for nothing," Setsuna remarked with a nod, sheathing the sword.

Despite the exhaustion, he felt that his venture into this singularity had been well worth it.

...

A few minutes later.

While the group was sorting through their equipment and admiring Setsuna's new spoils of war, a noise suddenly broke the relative calm.

Clatter—crack—

From the ruins not far away, movement stirred.

Rayshift's mastermind, Lev Lainur, crawled out from under the debris, looking battered but alive.

He glared at the group with venom in his eyes.

"Tsk, I didn't expect you to actually defeat Romulus… It seems humanity of this era really can't be relied upon…"

"Damn it! I should have just used the Holy Grail to summon the King of Destruction instead…"

"???"

Setsuna and the others turned around, startled.

"I thought you got caught in the aftermath and were already done for."

"Nice stealth skills, huh? Not even the radar picked you up!"

Earlier, after he handed the Holy Grail to the Divine Ancestor, everyone's attention had been entirely focused on Romulus. They had been too preoccupied with the battle to notice anything else.

Now, with the Grail destroyed and all the false emperors eliminated, Lev shouldn't have any tricks left up his sleeve.

"Tch—"

"It seems like I have to clean up this mess in this era myself. Keep barking all you like, you useless trash!"

"You think this is enough to stop me?!"

Lev stood up, straightened his clothes, and turned to the group with a manic expression.

"…"

"Seriously? We've already wrapped up the fight and started counting our loot, and you show up now? Talk about killing the mood. Damn it!"

Setsuna shook his head and prepared for battle.

"Kehehehehe…"

Lev spread his arms wide, chanting an incomprehensible incantation.

"Resistance is futile. The outcome is already predetermined."

"You are meaningless. You are powerless!"

The space around them began to ripple as magical energy surged wildly. It was clear that Lev was preparing a grand spell—or attempting to summon something terrifying.

Setsuna's face darkened as he speculated whether Lev was about to summon a Demon God Pillar as per the usual sequence.

Artoria, Nero, and Jeanne instinctively gripped their weapons tighter, sensing the impending threat.

"Now, let me show you pathetic mortals the favor of my king!"

"You forced my hand! Now you'll witness…"

Lev roared and continued his incantation, the air around him growing colder as streams of magical energy spiraled chaotically.

Bang—CRASH!

Before he could finish, Formidable casually walked up and kicked him to the ground.

The armored aircraft carrier, channeling the power of tens of thousands of tons of displacement into her strike, sent Lev sprawling onto the ground, twitching and utterly incapacitated.

"All that flashy nonsense scared me for a second," Formidable said, brushing off her hands and adjusting her hair before returning to Setsuna's side.

Artoria, Nero, Jeanne: "…"

Setsuna: "…"

"That's what you get for not having invincibility frames while transforming," Setsuna muttered.

"…"

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