Chapter Twenty-Five: Crimson Lightning of the Netherworld!

It was no wonder Zhao Tianhe was moved to tears—Ereshkigal was simply too powerful!

Unlike Artoria, the female King Arthur, who, despite being a being of the highest fantasy, was still mortal at heart, Ereshkigal was a true deity—the goddess of the underworld in Sumerian mythology. The bizarre long weapon she wielded, which resembled a spear, was in fact the Scorching Temple Meslamtaea. If she unleashed its full power, even a creator god would stumble before her.

And, more importantly, she was absolutely adorable!

Ereshkigal—Support State. Favorability Level 1, 10/200.

Daily tasks have been unlocked.

A true daily routine!

Summon Ereshkigal in her ordinary human state and accompany her for thirty minutes doing anything she doesn’t dislike: shopping, dining, or simply wandering about.

Task reward: Favorability +30

Chatting

An interactive app will be added to your phone. Artoria and Ereshkigal have already been auto-added as friends and grouped together.

You must chat with Ereshkigal for at least thirty minutes each day. The conversation should never displease her.

Task reward: Favorability +30

Support skills available: Underworld Crimson Lightning, Summon Garuda Spirit, Spear Rack Echo, Scorching Temple Meslamtaea Impact!

Support skill power is linked to favorability and the main body’s overall attributes.

Support skills share a cooldown—24 hours.

Don’t ask why Ereshkigal can provide support right from the start! Because Ele (short for Ereshkigal, known in myth as Kigal) is the absolute cutest!

“Thank you, Ele,” Zhao Tianhe said with heartfelt sincerity.

“Ereshkigal Favorability +1.”

“The goddess of the underworld is so cool!” “Favorability +1.” “Your sense of fashion is amazing!” “+1.” “Your hair ornament looks beautiful today!” “+1.” “I’d love to take a photo with Ereshkigal!” “+1.” …

As the goddess of the underworld, always weighed down by her duties yet striving to fulfill them, what Ereshkigal yearned for most was the goodwill and affection of others—in simple terms, she deeply longed for the equal and harmonious friendship that exists between people. As for reverence and awe, as the mistress of death, she had long grown weary of such sentiments…

As long as you sincerely praise her and show her friendship, her favorability soars in a short time! This could be seen from her daily tasks.

The power of support skills was tied to favorability; the higher the favorability, the stronger the effects.

Along the way, Zhao Tianhe managed to increase her favorability by twenty points with his words alone, and asked via his phone,

“Ereshkigal, how should I address you?”

“Whatever you like.”

“How about calling you Sister Ele?”

“Hey! I… Umm… Just call me Ele, okay? But why call me that?”

“It’s just a nickname. I can’t keep calling you by your full name, can I? As for me, just call me Tian or He—whichever is easier.”

The chat app’s interface resembled a certain penguin’s massively popular platform, though its icon was a bold, stylized “ten thousand.”

“By the way, take a look—what kind of support skill would work best on this monster?” Zhao Tianhe started a video call, aiming the camera at the Steelwater Slime.

“Hey! Don’t start a video call out of nowhere! I’m still—” Ele’s voice was flustered, the camera flashed on for a moment, then everything went black.

Yet in that instant, Zhao Tianhe thought he glimpsed a beautiful young woman with disheveled hair, wearing a semi-transparent camisole nightgown!

At the same time, an unexpected voice sounded.

“This creature’s physical structure is tough, but its soul is weak—probably because it’s only an avatar, right? Ele, which of your skills deals the most soul damage?” Artoria’s earnest voice came through.

It appeared the two of them lived in the same space.

“How did you get into my room?!” Ele sounded exasperated.

“Your door wasn’t locked,” Artoria replied calmly. “And answer quickly. Master is hopeless, he can’t even hurt that monster.”

“Mm, I really am hopeless…” Zhao Tianhe glanced at the floor, sounding dejected.

“Hey, you’re being too harsh—he’s all discouraged now!” Ele said a bit shyly. “Master, don’t lose heart. You’re still young. As for magic… I’ll try teaching you. But for now, the best way to kill that creature is with Underworld Crimson Lightning. Its compound strike will seriously harm the soul, and it can massively disrupt elemental creatures. Judging by its current state, it might even be a one-hit kill.”

By now, the Steelwater Slime, battered by the group for a long time, was already quite weakened.

“All right, everyone stand back!” Zhao Tianhe called out. “I’m about to use my innate ability—be careful not to get caught in the crossfire!”

The move, Underworld Crimson Lightning, had Ereshkigal split her Scorching Temple Meslamtaea into six, then imbue them with nether lightning, striking repeatedly with astonishing power and some splash damage.

Lainis was intrigued. She knew Zhao Tianhe’s ability was summoning Miss Saber—Artoria from the game.

‘Technically, the summon shouldn’t have cooled down yet, but even if it did—what could go wrong?’ Lainis thought, puzzled, but didn’t ask. She was the first to step back. ‘Could it be that Brother Zhao’s ability has another use? Could Miss Saber unleash her Noble Phantasm?!’

Just thinking about the game’s Noble Phantasm animations made Lainis excited—she’d get to see it in real life!

“Activate! Underworld Crimson Lightning!” Zhao Tianhe, seeing everyone had retreated to a safe distance, raised his hand and shouted.

In that moment, Ele’s blurry form appeared above his head, but the six spears of nether lightning at her side were anything but indistinct!

A flurry of piercing sounds split the air. Six bolts of underworld lightning crashed down on the Steelwater Slime, blasting it back again and again.

After three strikes, its molten steel-like body was already bubbling and slumping to the ground. After six, its form was scattered in every direction.

Though its remains tried to recombine, a few low-level spells from afar shattered its hopes, blasting the fragments even further apart.

“You’ve gained 50 experience points.” “Ele’s favorability +1.”

Because Zhao Tianhe was in a party, the experience gained wasn’t much. But why did Ele’s favorability increase even with that?

“Amazing! This is Ele’s power?! Incredible!” Zhao Tianhe exclaimed theatrically, leaving those around him baffled.

“Ele’s favorability +1.” “+1.”

‘Never seen this sister before… Ele? A new Heroic Spirit?’ Lainis seemed to catch on, her face full of anticipation. ‘I’ll get to see the new Heroic Spirit lady tomorrow!’