'This pool's rates are garbage!'
Artoria stared at the 'Eight Inner Gates' in her hand. Was the game expecting her to blow herself up along with Thanos? And she didn't even have Chakra—useless! She almost tossed the scroll into the red pool for recycling, then hesitated. If the X-Men existed in this world it was a different story; if Wolverine was real, the Eight Inner Gates became invaluable. Add a Chakra cultivation method later and it would be a trump card.
'If only I could get my hands on that holy lance—now that would be epic.'
She gazed enviously at the spear in North-South Hemisphere's grip. With Rhongomyniad she could face Thanos even without the Infinity Gauntlet. The weapon could elevate a human with Dragon Factor—like Artoria—to divine status, turning her into the Goddess Rhongomyniad. Emotions would be suppressed, but power would skyrocket. The conceptual weapon thrilled Artoria, yet reason held her back.
To avoid being dominated by the spear she would need the will and strength to dominate it instead. Right now the lance would rule her, and the White Lion King would appear in this world, replaying Chapter Six of the Singularity. Hidden powers—Heaven, Hell—existed, but the White Lion King could still snatch prey from their jaws.
'Power… power is such a headache.'
Thinking of her strength made her temples throb. She was still a child; a stranger could abduct her off the street. Howard and Maria's Deaths loomed over her like a falling blade. She needed a trump card to avert that tragedy. As for the butterfly effect—tough. She was part of the stark family now, with parents and a brother she cared about. This was a flesh-and-blood world; she couldn't ignore their Deaths. She was human.
'Please, give me something good.'
Perhaps the prayer worked, or the items she'd thrown in were valuable enough. A golden figure surfaced in the pool. The glow faded, revealing a stunning woman in a violet leather catsuit so risqué it could make anyone blush, but Artoria had no indecent thoughts—she knew this person too well.
'P-… Master!'
She bit back a forbidden word. Artoria didn't know whether this familiar woman possessed self-awareness, yet anyone could sense how formidable she was.
'Master, are you there? Answer me.'
Unease gnawed at her. Since Scáthach's appearance, there had been no sound—unnerving. Artoria stepped closer and patted those long, toned legs; she was simply too short to reach higher. One touch and everything ignited—her magic circuits blazed, Scáthach's figure dissolved into a sphere of light that wrapped around her.
Knowledge of spells, magical beasts, combat skills—all detonated inside her mind. She didn't even have time to scream before fainting. Inert magic circuits flared open, greedily remolding her body under a flood of mysteries. Her small frame couldn't contain it; on the verge of rupture, the first Craft Essence, 'Innate Bounded Field', activated. Inside the previously empty bounded field, a purple silhouette solidified, eyes opening with a hint of amusement. The blank world began to change; when the transformation finished, Scáthach vanished.
No one knew where she had gone or what her intentions were. Only a deep-crimson spear remained, standing silently within the bounded field.
'What… happened to me?'
Much later, Artoria lay in her room, memories swirling like thick porridge. Yet she sensed she no longer needed to fear for Howard and Maria; with the knowledge Master had granted, she had a new plan.
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the story has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 chapters in advance over on my Patreon: [email protected]/TLHimejima.
Every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and let me know.