Hikigaya's God Slayer Story

Chapter 4 – Temporary Departure

To be honest, Hikigaya wasn't entirely sure whether the Italian magicians truly didn't know that the god summoned by the Gorgon's Stone would be Athena.

After all, the Gorgon was an extremely important symbol in Athena's arsenal—namely, the Aegis adorned with the head of the Gorgon.

That's why Athena was called the "Goddess of the Shield."

This overwhelmingly powerful divine shield was the foremost image of this warrior goddess in the minds of the ancient Greeks.

Even someone like Hikigaya, only half-informed, knew that much.

Of course, he had also noted the young man's reference to the "Earth Mother," which at least indicated the Italian magicians had some idea of the scope.

As for the so-called Earth Mother, Hikigaya had his own interpretation.

He believed that the Earth Mother spoken of in the world of the Campione (God-Slayers) referred to the Great Mother Goddess worshipped before the Bronze Age.

The defining feature of this religion was its focus on the "Great Mother" deity. This goddess typically embodied domains such as nature and fertility, with life attributed to her loving and compassionate side, and death to her terrifying aspect—but even death was seen as a preparation for rebirth.

At least, judging from the original source material, the non-compliant Athena strongly displayed these Great Mother traits.

One could see lingering cultural remnants of early human worship of bird goddesses and snake goddesses in her—namely, her associations with birds, snakes, and similar creatures.

Even though by the time of Classical Greece, her divine nature had evolved into something completely different.

And according to the young man's explanation, if the scope was widened to include the entire pantheon of Great Mother goddesses, the only symbolic connection Hikigaya could think of was the snake.

However, considering that snakes weren't Athena's only symbolic animal, and given that divine symbols changed over time—from hunting societies to pastoral societies—resulting in the same deity having different symbolic animals during different periods (which sometimes even overlapped), it was understandable that these Italian magicians couldn't determine which goddess descended from the Great Mother would be summoned by the Gorgon's Stone.

Still, Hikigaya wanted to hear their take on it.

For a God-Slayer, slaying a god was never a guaranteed success—it wasn't 100%, more like 50%, or even lower. He was willing to help, but only if he felt there was at least a fifty-fifty chance, not zero.

He was sure that a non-compliant Athena would definitely not be as weak as she appeared in TV shows. That was something he had come to understand through repeated god-slaying experiences.

But in the end, he was disappointed.

"We can only say that it is genuine. That much is beyond question," the young man explained to Hikigaya again.

Seriously? Hikigaya thought. And you call yourselves magicians? I thought magicians were supposed to be geniuses!

Give me back my fantasies about magicians!

"You didn't try spirit vision?" Hikigaya asked again, unwilling to give up.

"Well… I'm terribly sorry, but our spirit-seers could not penetrate the divine power contained within the Gorgon's Stone…"

After hearing this response, Hikigaya gave up.

These guys are completely useless…

"Forget it…" he muttered, then stood up. "I'll think about it. Leave the artifact with you for now. The god shouldn't show up so soon anyway… that much, you can be sure of, right?"

Seeing the young man and the two elders nod, Hikigaya finally felt they were at least somewhat reliable—albeit barely.

He then turned to Liliana, who had also stood up, and asked, "Where am I staying?"

"I'll take you there right now," Liliana nodded. Other than that one comment earlier, she hadn't said much at all.

Even though Hikigaya hadn't given a definite answer, she didn't pressure him either.

That kind of quiet understanding was actually rather considerate.

Then the two of them left together.

Five minutes later…

"Hey…" Hikigaya said while walking down the street, glancing behind him at the blonde girl following them, "why is your friend trailing behind us?"

A knight has a side gig as a tailer now?

And if you're going to tail someone, can you at least be more discreet?

"Sorry, Hachiman. I'll go drive her away."

Hikigaya couldn't tell if it was just his imagination, but it felt like Liliana was actually kind of eager when she said that.

"No need to overreact." Hikigaya quickly grabbed her arm. "Let her follow if she wants. The road's wide enough for everyone. Sure, she's walking the same side as us, but we're not the traffic police."

"Oh…"

Yikes, that disappointed tone was way too obvious.

These two girls clearly didn't get along. The old saying was true: colleagues are rivals.

After walking for a bit, Liliana suddenly said, "Hachiman, how about I show you around Rome?"

"Sure, sounds good. But I'm kinda hungry. Let's eat something first."

"Alright."

The knight nodded and headed toward the roadside.

Hikigaya couldn't tell if he should be impressed that Rome had so many dining options, or if Liliana was just a bold and decisive action-taker.

He shrugged and followed her.

Liliana led him straight to a café.

They sat across from each other at one of the small tables set up outside.

After a short while, a middle-aged woman with a thick Roman accent came over. Liliana ordered two espressos, while Hikigaya added a crepe.

Once the food arrived, they began eating and drinking—without saying a word.

Liliana clearly wasn't the chatty type. Hikigaya had already figured that out.

And he himself wasn't the kind of person who liked talking while eating.

Anyway, someone more talkative would show up soon enough.

"May I join you, my King?"

Erica Blandelli appeared beside Hikigaya, her smile full of energy.

"Mm…" mouth full of crepe, Hikigaya simply gestured for her to do as she pleased.

Liliana raised an eyebrow, clearly displeased.

"Oh my, frowning isn't good for a lady, Liliana."

Erica giggled and sat down. Whether it was intentional or not, she even chose to sit a little closer to Hikigaya.

"You're too close, Erica Blandelli. Hachiman is trying to eat," Liliana said coldly.

"Yes, that's why I'm here to serve the King, Liliana. It's a knight's duty, after all," Erica responded nonchalantly and leaned in even more.

Of course, Hikigaya had no illusions that he was going to get the same kind of treatment Kusanagi Godou enjoyed.

It was clear Erica was only trying to provoke Liliana.

So he said nothing, kept eating, and watched the show with interest.

Because clearly, Erica was Liliana's "mouth-opener."

"I know this stuff better than you, so don't lecture me!" Liliana's displeasure became more obvious. "And you, why are you even here? Hachiman doesn't have time for your nonsense. You should go back already."

"And how do you know I'm just messing around?" Erica multitasked, arguing with Liliana while simultaneously placing her order with the approaching server. "I'm here to provide the King with more information about the Gorgon's Stone."

"Then why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Heh, didn't you also keep your mouth shut, Liliana?"

Alright. Hikigaya was no longer enjoying the spectacle.

It was starting to get too noisy…

Chapter 5 – Gorgon

Erica didn't continue bickering with Liliana. Instead, she twisted her sinfully seductive figure and very directly pulled something out from her chest.

A fist-sized, badge-shaped stone lay quietly in the palm of Erica Blandelli's hand.

Judging by the material, it seemed to be made from obsidian or some other kind of stone, worn and chipped around the edges to the point that the carvings were nearly indistinguishable.

On the front, there was a depiction of a human face with serpent hair. The carving technique was quite crude, but its primitive aura couldn't be reproduced by mere craftsmanship.

At the very least, no one could draw serpentine hair that visibly writhed the way this one did.

It was truly moving—not some optical illusion or a trick of perspective.

Hikigaya took one glance and knew: this was the Gorgon's Stone.

But this girl just brought it out like that!?

And from that place!?

Hikigaya finally saw a part of Erica Blandelli that matched the original series.

He looked at her with a gaze full of complex, indiscernible meaning.

The girl's body was tall and slender like a cypress tree, but her chest was remarkably full, like ripe fruit ready for harvest.

And now, Hikigaya realized that her curves had more utility than he'd originally imagined.

"Your gaze is terrifying," Erica said, finally showing a hint of awkwardness as she toned down her usual devilish smile in response to Hikigaya's peculiar expression.

Noticing Erica's discomfort, Hikigaya smiled faintly and withdrew his gaze, then finished the last piece of crepe on his plate.

"When did you get it?" Liliana suddenly asked. "Did you consider the reactions of 'the Old Lady,' 'the She-Wolf,' and the 'City of Lilies'?"

"Of course. I simply did what they wanted to do but didn't have the courage to act on immediately. After all, if those esteemed elders hadn't already noticed it, it would've been completely impossible," Erica replied, using the question to free herself from the awkwardness.

But that wasn't what Hikigaya cared about.

With a flick of his finger, the Gorgon's Stone flew from Erica's palm into his own hand.

"This is the divine power of the Great Mother," he said, playing with the stone, feeling the energy within it.

He could feel it—this thing was a signpost, a beacon that could guide many Great Mother goddesses into the present world, transforming into heretical gods.

It was something akin to a grimoire.

Though its function was different, it was essentially the same kind of object as the Prometheus Tablet, which was originally meant for Kusanagi Godou to slay war gods—and now resided in Hikigaya's collection.

Unlike the Prometheus Tablet, however, the Gorgon's Stone held a vast amount of divine power. It was more than enough to, say, plant a world tree with a single use.

No wonder the Italian magicians couldn't do anything with it.

"Would you be willing to accept it?" Erica asked cheerfully as Hikigaya pondered.

But she clearly misunderstood his reaction.

"Who said I'd accept it?" Hikigaya gave a wry smile and immediately shoved the stone back toward her.

Erica tried to dodge, but Hikigaya's fingers brushed against her palm. That brief contact felt like a jolt of electricity coursing through her body, causing her to shudder and momentarily lose control of her limbs. By the time she recovered, the Gorgon's Stone was already firmly in her grasp.

A flush of red bloomed across the girl's face, and she looked both embarrassed and annoyed.

"Don't look at me like that," Hikigaya said with a smile. "If I agreed this easily, wouldn't that make me too cheap?"

It was clear now—any so-called guarantee that Athena wouldn't find this stone anytime soon was utter nonsense.

Even if she didn't find it right away, it wouldn't be thanks to those magicians.

"Besides, if I accept it here, I'll inevitably end up fighting a god—and this city will probably get damaged in the process. So unless my conditions are met, I won't be taking it."

With that, he stretched lazily and leaned back in his chair, taking a relaxed posture.

"Go ahead, try to convince me."

As he said this, Hikigaya shot Liliana a look, silently signaling her not to intervene.

He genuinely wanted to see how this girl—known in the original work for her social finesse—planned to convince him.

Unfortunately, Erica wasn't in a great mental state right now, because her first line sounded incredibly stupid to Hikigaya.

"As a God-Slayer, do you not yearn to battle a goddess?" she said through clenched teeth.

Hikigaya burst out laughing—as if he'd just heard the funniest joke.

"If I wanted that, I'd go seek it myself. I don't need anyone else to arrange it for me. That reason doesn't convince me. Next."

"Hmph… how heartless," Erica said, frustrated. "You know full well that if the Gorgon's Stone remains in this country, a Heretical God will surely descend.

And the king we once depended on has disappeared after being seriously injured. The poor, helpless citizens now have no one to rely on—and you, the new king, abandon them like this."

Injured?

Hikigaya was a little surprised.

That idiot with the sword actually got hurt?

Last time he saw him, that guy seemed perfectly fine.

Hikigaya turned to Liliana with a questioning gaze.

"Yes, the Alliance Leader was indeed injured. While you were battling Poseidon, he was engaged in a fight with another god."

"He was seriously injured?" Hikigaya asked.

"That part isn't entirely certain. At the time, Sir Salvatore still appeared to be fine. But his disappearance is definitely related to that incident."

"I see," Hikigaya nodded thoughtfully. Then he turned back to Erica. "Wait… you're not trying to convince me by tying all of this to me, are you?"

He spread his hands and said, "Sorry, but Doni getting hurt has nothing to do with me. So protecting this city isn't something I'm obligated to do."

At that point, his expression turned disappointed.

After a moment of thought, he stood up.

"You're really not in the right state of mind today. Go home, think things over, and come back when you're ready."

"Hachiman, where are you going?" Liliana also stood, noticing that Hikigaya was preparing to leave.

"Nothing serious. I'll contact you later. Just going for a walk."

Hikigaya shot her a glance.

"You and your friend can go ahead. Make sure you hold onto that stone."

With that, he was gone before Liliana could react. His pace was quick, and he vanished into the crowd in no time.

Liliana didn't even have a chance to call out to him.

"What's with him…" she muttered, recalling the strange look Hikigaya had given her earlier, totally baffled.

Before she could puzzle it out, Erica suddenly cried out.

"What happened?" Liliana quickly turned around—only to see her lifelong rival holding the Gorgon's Stone, an expression of complete shock on her face as she handed it over.

Liliana felt a sudden pang of unease and quickly took the stone. But the moment she looked at it, she too gasped.

The image that had been writhing just moments before was now completely still. Not only that, the stone no longer gave off any divine power at all. It felt like a completely ordinary rock.

If she didn't know Erica would never joke about something like this, she would've suspected it was a fake.

Liliana looked up and met Erica's gaze. In each other's eyes, they both saw the same disbelief.