Typemoon: Starting Out as the Lion King's Personal Knight

Credits: Adrian Kacprzycki

As soon as he left the Underworld, Alaric noticed that the sky was growing darker, realizing that his time spent in the Underworld had deviated from his initial expectations. "Was it at the very beginning?"

Alaric recalled the moment he received Ishtar's divine energy. Completely immersed in the enhancements and transformations it brought, his sense of time must have faltered during that period.

"Ishtar isn't here anymore—"

Flying aboard the Heavenly Vessel, Alaric expanded his senses as much as he could, searching for Ishtar's unique magical energy signature. However, even as he approached the city, he detected no trace of her presence.

Alaric's attention was soon drawn to the cityscape beneath him.

"This is... Kutha?"

It was only then that Alaric realized he had battled with Ishtar to the outskirts of Kutha City, only to be blasted into the Underworld afterward.

Moreover, Alaric had detected two Servant signatures within Kutha City.

"It's probably Ushiwakamaru and Musashibou Benkei—"

Alaric recognized these two Servant signatures as belonging to Ushiwakamaru and Musashibou Benkei, two of the seven Servants summoned by Gilgamesh. They had been dispatched to Kutha to handle the aftermath of Ereshkigal's assault, which had left the city in disarray.

"Perfect, I can ask them if they've seen Ishtar."

Yet, Alaric didn't hold much hope for Ishtar's whereabouts.

After all, he had forcefully kissed Ishtar and immediately blasted him into the Underworld. Even as a goddess, she couldn't suppress Tohsaka Rin's personality entirely.

Ishtar's mood was a secondary concern; what Alaric wanted to know was when Ereshkigal would take over Ishtar's position.

Visiting Ereshkigal through the Underworld wasn't a wise decision; at least, Alaric felt that he needed to establish some rapport with Ereshkigal before meeting her in person.

Jumping straight into a confrontation wasn't ideal—it would only lead to him getting beaten up if negotiations failed.

This concern was reinforced during his trip to the Underworld, where King Hassan had informed him that moving into the Underworld as a living being consumed fate.

Although Alaric had no clear understanding of what Fate Energy was, it sounded extremely important. This made him realize that visiting the Underworld should be a one-time action, reserved for a decisive meeting.

Without wasting time, Alaric stepped on the accelerator. The Heavenly Vessel turned into a streak of black light and shot straight into Kutha City.

The streak of black light naturally caused a stir among all the inhabitants of Kutha, especially the two battle-hardened warriors within the city.

"Benkei, stay alert!"

Leaping onto a rooftop, Ushiwakamaru locked her gaze on the streak of black light. Simply staring at it filled her with unease.

Moreover, if her eyes weren't deceiving her, the Noble Phantasm within the light was none other than the Heavenly Vessel Maanna, which belonged to the goddess Ishtar who had recently departed.

"Ishtar's returned?"

Ushiwakamaru couldn't confirm this, so she instructed Musashibou Benkei below to evacuate the citizens and minimize the potential damage from the impending collision.

"Halt! Please stop where you are and come no closer!"

Ushiwakamaru couldn't allow the black comet to enter Kutha freely. Seeing that it showed no signs of stopping, she shouted sharply, "If you insist on moving forward, I will be forced to act!"

With that, Ushiwakamaru placed her hand on the hilt of her sword, her eyes locked firmly on the approaching black comet.

Under the vigilant gazes of Ushiwakamaru and others, the Heavenly Vessel came to a screeching halt at the last possible moment.

As the black magical light dispersed, it revealed the Heavenly Vessel and a lone figure.

It wasn't the goddess Ishtar as Ushiwakamaru had expected, but a young man she had encountered before.

"Hey, Miss Ushiwakamaru, Mr Benkei, this should be our second meeting, right? My name is Alaric. I came here with Merlin and am currently working under Gilgamesh. I guess that makes us colleagues, doesn't it?"

Alaric glanced at Benkei and the soldiers standing guard below. His smile remained unchanged as he continued speaking to Ushiwakamaru, "Looks like there's been a misunderstanding. Was my entrance too dramatic?"

"Lord Alaric, your entrance was indeed a bit... excessive," Ushiwakamaru replied with a wry smile. "You gave us a fright."

...

A few minutes later – Inside a tavern in Kutha City.

"Ah, nothing beats eating good food!"

Alaric downed a large glass of juice in one go. After a long day, being able to enjoy fresh food felt like one of life's greatest pleasures. "So, where are you headed next, Lord Alaric?"

After chatting with Alaric, Ushiwakamaru and the others had learned more about his mission. Their respect for him was evident on their faces.

To face multiple goddesses alone and remain undaunted, Alaric's demeanor had left a deep impression on Ushiwakamaru.

Even Benkei remarked, "No wonder King Gilgamesh entrusted you with such an important mission!"

"I still need to find Goddess Ishtar. Have you seen where she went? She should've passed through Kutha City."

After exhausting her stock of gems during their long battle, Ishtar would undoubtedly need to replenish them. Kutha, being the nearest city and Ishtar's summoning ground, was her most likely destination.

Hearing this, Ushiwakamaru sighed helplessly. "Goddess Ishtar... she forcibly collected gems from the citizens, calling it a protection fee—"

She couldn't hold back a laugh at this point.

"As for where she went afterward, based on what the other citizens said, she likely headed to Mount Ebih."

Mount Ebih—

Hearing Ushiwakamaru's words, ALaric's mind immediately recalled the myth surrounding Mount Ebih. In Mesopotamian mythology, Ishtar had destroyed this sacred mountain revered even by the king of the gods, simply because she found it displeasing.

According to the myth, Ishtar stormed Mount Ebih, growing more powerful with each step she took. Eventually, she seized the mountain's peak and pierced its vital core with her spear, causing the entire mountain range to collapse.

Without Tohsaka Rin's personality holding her back, the complete Ishtar would be a terrifying demonic goddess—a Venusian devil who toyed with humanity.

Now, however, her clumsier, more foolish traits—thanks to Rin—seemed to dominate.

Having confirmed Ishtar's current location, Alaric began eating faster, pushing his conversation with Ushiwakamaru forward.

Not only did he gather information about Kutha's current state, but he also inquired about the whereabouts of the other summoned Servants.

Since Quetzalcoatl had remained inactive in the jungle, the other five Servants besides Ushiwakamaru and Benkei had been dispatched to the demonic beast frontlines to combat the increasing number of magical beasts.

"Gorgon, huh—"

After finishing his meal, Alaric thought about the troublesome Beast Goddess he had yet to encounter. He felt a bit at a loss for how to deal with her.

From her behavior of sending magical beasts to attack humans, Alaric could sense her overwhelming hatred for humanity.

The Beast Goddess Gorgon despised humanity—perhaps even ignored their existence entirely. Her goal differed drastically from the other two goddesses.

...

Several minutes later.

Bidding farewell to Ushiwakamaru, Alaric boarded the Heavenly Vessel, which turned into a shooting star streaking through the night sky toward Mount Ebih.

The vast Mesopotamian land receded beneath him. As the towering mountain came into view, Alaric felt the intense divine aura emanating from its peak.

"I miscalculated. Ishtar is a pseudo-Servant nearly identical to her complete divine form—"

Perhaps he had already realized this earlier, but Alaric hadn't connected it to the possibility of a complete divine manifestation. After all, as a spirit summoned into the modern world, achieving a complete divine form seemed impossible.

Yet, it had happened.

This realization confirmed that Ishtar had never shown her full power during their earlier battle.

Much like how Alaric could awaken his dragon blood, Ishtar's divinity had remained dormant.

Taking a deep breath, Alaric climbed toward the mountain peak until a magnificent temple appeared before him.

Seated high upon the throne within—

Was a beautiful goddess with flowing golden hair.