I Am a Heroic Spirit

"No, it's just a bunch of idiots making a meaningless commotion." The blue-haired boy sneered.

"That's good. The rest doesn't matter. After all, you can't ask a criminal to care about the loss of the library."

Gunner shrugged and smiled.

"Speaking of which, you're quite good as a support. Whether it's the Goddess of Luck's overshoes, the flying box, the bronze pig, or the tinderbox, they're all very useful."

The blue-haired boy curled his lips and said, "Forget it, these things can only work on ordinary second- or third-rate Heroic Spirits."

After the two teenagers exchanged a few words, Gunner turned to Arima Takashi and said, "This is a relatively safe place for the time being. You probably have a lot of questions now, and you can ask them now."

"Let's go to the front. This is not a good place to talk." The blue-haired boy said, pointing to the mess on the ground.

In the reading area in front of the library, the wounded were recuperating while Arima Takashi, Deba Shizuji, a female reporter, a cameraman, and two young heroes were sitting around a table.

At the same time, the leaders of the six countries have stopped communicating and are staring at the screen intently. They have only a vague understanding of the relevant intelligence and are in urgent need of a detailed understanding of the existence of the heroic spirits.

The Internet also became quiet. Although some people involved do not know some inside information, the detailed explanation of this supernatural event is undoubtedly very attractive to mortals.

Arima Takashi asked, "First, what is a Heroic Spirit? How is it different from ordinary souls and evil spirits?"

The blue-haired boy said, "I don't think this is something that requires detailed interpretation. Eastern and Nordic countries all have their own interpretations of Heroic Spirits."

Deba Jingsi sneered and said, "You mean you are the warriors of the god Odin."

"Well, it seems that I did overestimate your IQ. You don't look stupid at all." The blue-haired boy sighed, looking helpless.

"Sorry, that's just his nature. Let me explain," Gunner interrupted. "A Heroic Spirit is a being transformed from a hero whose great deeds have been passed down as legends after their death, becoming an object of devotion. Because they are the souls of the ascended, Heroic Spirits are ranked only below angels and gods, and far superior to humans. So, even if a Heroic Spirit was a mortal in life, after becoming a Heroic Spirit, they possess power that surpasses that of ordinary people with special abilities. Typically, we Heroic Spirits are summoned by the world to protect humanity when necessary."

"That is

Chapter 66 Human Evil and World Evil

"It's been explained that Heroic Spirits are beings that are created by heroes who gather faith after their death, but even if they don't actually exist, heroes from myths and legends are born through the gathering of faith. Furthermore, there are those who make certain pacts with the world during their lifetime, and in return for these pacts, become Heroic Spirits after their death. Beings who become Heroic Spirits are freed from the constraints of time and travel to the Throne of Heroes, located outside this world."

In the library, Gunner continued to explain: "Just as every Heroic Spirit has his own anecdotes, each Heroic Spirit is classified differently according to the way they were born. These are the three attributes of Heaven, Earth, and Man. Most Heroic Spirits belong to one of these categories. The Heroic Spirits of the Heaven Camp are those gods who have been demoted as Heroic Spirits, or they may be the descendants of God or the embodiment of inheritance. The Earth Camp includes those legendary heroes, goblins, or monsters who live on earth. The Human Camp is composed of heroes and great men who really existed in history. For example, as a real American Western gunslinger, I, a well-known writer, belong to the Human Camp. Heaven overcomes Earth, but is overcome by Man. Earth overcomes Man, but is overcome by Heaven. Man overcomes Heaven, and is overcome by Earth. Man should believe in God. However, once the Heroic Spirits belonging to the Human Camp do not believe in God, God will... Ming will become "non-existent." Heroes and fairies living on earth have nothing to do with faith. However, the Heroic Spirits belonging to this faction will not choose to be enemies of the gods who created them... In addition, there are some special Heroic Spirits that do not belong to any of these three factions. Exceptions among exceptions. That is the Heroic Spirits of the Stars. They are neither heaven, earth, nor human, but they exist under heaven, above earth, and born of humans. They are the hope of mankind and the symbol of overcoming difficulties. The Heroic Spirits of the Stars faction have no connection with the three factions of heaven, earth, and man. Because they are exceptions. There is also a fifth attribute that is mutually exclusive with "star": "beast", the beast of original sin. That being said, it is ultimately just a separate category. Since these categories do not have the same effects as class compatibility, they do not need to be overly considered during combat.

As soon as Gunner finished speaking, Shizuka Deba immediately questioned him: "Writer? I've never heard of a ten-year-old being a writer."

"Because most Heroic Spirits appear at the peak of their lives, it's normal for them to look younger than their actual age. Furthermore, the same person could be suitable for multiple classes, and each class would give them a different form when summoned," Gunner explained.

"So, your current appearance is the peak of your life." The female reporter asked with a strange look on her face. Others also looked at the blue-haired boy with strange eyes. The peak of life was actually around ten years old. This was too strange.

"Because children are the most talented!" said the blue-haired boy in self-abandonment as he was stared at by everyone.

Seeing that the blue-haired boy seemed reluctant to discuss the issue, the female reporter tactfully averted her gaze and turned to Gunner. Suddenly, a key thought occurred to her, and she quickly asked, "May I ask why you appeared? Since there has never been any news of your Heroic Spirits appearing in this world, it means that you Heroic Spirits should not easily appear in the human world. And you just said that Heroic Spirits, as a force to protect humanity, are summoned by the world to descend upon the human world when necessary. So, is this the case now?"

The others also thought of what Gunner had said before, and their faces suddenly changed. They looked at Gunner in shock. If what he said was true, it meant that something major was about to happen in this world that would affect the survival of mankind.

"It seems that you are not hopeless, you idiot." The blue-haired boy looked at the female reporter with great surprise, and looked her up and down, as if he couldn't believe that she could think of this.

"Yes, you are a clever lady."

Gunner nodded and said appreciatively, "Indeed, just as you guessed, this world is about to be destroyed."

Gunner's casual remark caused a huge wave on the Internet like a raging storm, and made everyone who paid attention here either panic or question.

"Ridiculous! This is simply alarmist! How can this world be destroyed so easily?"

Shizuka Deba retorted loudly. He had no good feelings towards non-humans to begin with, and after hearing Gunner's words, his impression of Gunner and the blue-haired boy became even worse.

"Haha, do you think you have the qualifications to let us deceive you?" The blue-haired boy stated a fact in a sarcastic tone.

Suddenly, Dechang Jingsi was speechless, and the Internet suddenly became quiet. Everyone in the library who heard the blue-haired boy's words was unable to say anything.

Although the blue-haired boy's tone was not very good, it was just as he said. They had no right to be deceived by the Heroic Spirits. Even the country of Japan did not have this right.

"Ahem..." Gunner coughed dryly twice, noticing the awkward atmosphere, and then continued, "It's humanity's own fault. As human evil thoughts grow, the damage to the planet becomes increasingly severe, creating the necessary conditions for the advent of both human and world evil. To prevent world destruction, the world has granted us Heroic Spirits access to the human world, allowing us to arrive."

"What is human evil and world evil? And you keep talking about the world. Does the world itself have self-awareness?"

The female reporter's professional quality is really high, because she quickly grasped the key point again. It seems that even without this interview, promotion and salary increase would not be a problem for her.

"The world naturally has self-awareness, but it's not a single entity. It's composed of two parts: Gaia, representing the will of the planet, and Alaya, representing the will of humanity. Together, they constitute the will of the world. We, the Heroic Spirits, are their thugs. Once trouble arises in the world, we must take action."

Gunner explained his theory of the world, then his expression turned serious. Seeing his expression, everyone knew that what was coming next was the most important part, so they adjusted their attitude, closed their mouths, and prepared to listen carefully.

"Let's talk about world evil first. World evil is actually the will of the Earth in this world..."

"Wait, didn't you just say that the Earth Will is your boss and sent you to save the world? And from what you said, they are all women." The female reporter interrupted Gunner in surprise.

"Don't you know about the theory of parallel worlds? You should have known about this theory by this time." Gunner asked in a puzzled manner.

"Parallel world? You Heroic Spirits also understand this?"

Everyone felt that their worldview was going awry. Heroic spirits were clearly myths, yet now they were talking about science.

Gunner raised an eyebrow and said, "Don't forget, among our Heroic Spirits there are also many Heroic Spirits who were transformed from scientists after their death. Even Heroic Spirits from the future are quite a few. However, in order to avoid affecting the normal development of the present world, Heroic Spirits from the future are not allowed to enter the human world."

"And the will of the world we belong to controls the development of all parallel worlds, including the heroic spirits of the Earth and humanity."

Gunner ignored the disillusioned looks of the crowd and continued, "The Great Snake is the being known as the Will of the Earth in this parallel world. It has protected humanity since the creation of the world. However, since humans separated themselves from nature and began to destroy it on a large scale, the Great Snake has become a symbol of evil for humans. Because it was transformed from a part of the world, it is also known as World Evil."

"Big snake? Are you talking about the Yamata-no-Orochi?" asked Tsuchimiya Masara in surprise.

"Well, that's understandable. Since most of this world's spiritual energy is concentrated in Japan, whether it's human evil, world evil, or us heroic spirits, most will choose Japan to descend. And the identity of world evil in Japan is the legendary Yamata no Orochi."

Gunner's words made everyone wonder whether they should be proud that their country was so powerful, or sad that their country had become the battlefield that was about to begin.

"As for human evil, it's actually the result of a qualitative shift in the quantitative variation of human love. These emotions are the most fundamental to what makes us human; without them, humans become no different from animals. It's only when these emotions are taken to extremes that they ultimately become the cause of humanity's extinction. In other words, human evil isn't evil itself; on the contrary, it's often a deeply beautiful emotion, a manifestation of love. Transforming into human evil is simply the result of extremes. Beings who, driven by their deep love for humanity, ultimately resort to destroying humanity to achieve their goal of loving it, are called the Beast class, the beast of original sin, awakened by humanity's own evil."

…………9; flowers…………

"Just like the seven deadly sins in the Bible, human evil is also divided into seven. The specific information is unknown. We only know that the first human evil will appear in Japan in a year."

Everyone couldn't help but fall silent, and the atmosphere suddenly became heavy. It would have been fine if they didn't know about it, but after hearing what Gunner said, it turned out that it was all humanity's fault in the end. Because society developed too fast, it led to the loss of humanity, the destruction of nature, and finally the consequences of doing so.

Seeing no one speak, Gunner continued, "The power of human evil is self-explanatory. It can force the world to allow Heroic Spirits to enter the human world. In other words, every human evil requires the combined strength of a large number of Heroic Spirits to resist. These are either the original Ancient Gods, the fallen bodies of certain God Kings, or the demons from Hell."

After a period of silence, the female reporter's question broke the silence.

"So what are classes? I've been hearing you talk about them since the battle. And what about chaotic evil? What is that? And do gods... really exist?"

The female reporter's question perked up everyone. No matter what, the most important thing now was to get enough intelligence to deal with the impending evil of mankind.

As for the others, today's live broadcast is needed to make people aware of the hidden dangers of the crisis and thus improve the social atmosphere. After all, relying solely on them, no matter how much they think about it, they can't change anything.

Gunner replied, "Of course, gods exist. However, he and I are both modern-day Heroic Spirits, and we don't understand them. If we could meet a Heroic Spirit of the Age of Gods with benevolent attributes, perhaps we could find answers."

"As for classes, they are the vessels that the world provides for us to manifest in this world."

"Container?" Deiba Jingsi asked thoughtfully.

Gunner nodded and said, "Yes, the class is the container. In fact, what you see is just the class clone of our original body. Our original body is located in the Seat of Heroic Spirits outside the world. Because we are too powerful, once we appear in the world, it will cause a huge impact. This is not what the world wants to see. Therefore, we have classes to limit our power. Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin

Chapter 67 Andersen's Ridicule

"Don't be discouraged. You are already very strong. According to the common sense of the human world and the information about the distribution of various forces provided to us Heroic Spirits when the world descends, there are no more than ten people who are stronger than you among humans without special bloodlines. If you are in your prime, a one-on-one fight between him and a third-rate Heroic Spirit without a powerful Noble Phantasm like him may not be your opponent." Gunner saw what Chang Jingsi was thinking and comforted him with a smile.

"But becoming a Heroic Spirit isn't easy. Those of you in the psychic world have Abe Haruaki above you. Unless your achievements can barely be compared to Abe Haruaki's, forget it. As for Mr. Arima, you have a better chance. After all, you've achieved the most in the world of ghouls and investigators, and this live broadcast will undoubtedly help you gain fame, giving you a chance to become a Heroic Spirit after death."

There was an unignorable surprise in Arima Takashi's eyes, and a look of joy appeared on his face. After all, according to Gunner, becoming a heroic spirit meant that one's name would be passed down through the ages. This kind of thing was an ultimate honor for anyone, and he was no exception.

"According to you, in order to become a Heroic Spirit, one must achieve extremely high achievements in a certain field and have enough reputation, right?" The female reporter suddenly asked a question when everyone else was looking at Arima Takamasa with envy.

Gunner nodded and said, "Well, generally speaking, that's the case. In other words, the historical figures, mythological figures, and legendary figures you remember have a high chance of becoming Gaia's Heroic Spirits. In addition, some Heroic Spirits on the Alaya side were chosen by Alaya while still alive to become guardians fighting for humanity's survival. These Heroic Spirits are generally unknown, and no one knows them, nor does their fame enhance their abilities. However, these Heroic Spirits are often top-notch. Even without powerful Noble Phantasms, the added bonus of fame is enough to complete Alaya's missions."

"Popularity? That's reputation, right? Reputation can strengthen the heroic spirit?" The female reporter grasped the key point again and answered her own question.

Gunner replied, "Yes. For example, if everyone on Earth knew my name, identity, and past, perhaps by the time I descend 17 times, I could give this clone of my class power close to my original form."

"Is that so? It seems that fame is not a very useful thing." The female reporter said to herself. She originally thought that enough reputation could make the heroic spirit have a qualitative leap, but who would have thought that even if the fame reached the highest level, it would not have much impact.

"You can't say that. After all, it's just the icing on the cake. The strength of a Heroic Spirit is fixed the moment they become a Heroic Spirit. Unless humans spend a hundred or two hundred years adding some things to my legend, maybe there will be more relevant skills when I descend next time." Gunner said in a joking tone, but the meaning behind his words was that the job of the Heroic Spirit's clone would change according to human legends, and this information was remembered by those who were interested.

"What is a Noble Phantasm?"

Seeing that the female reporter wanted to ask some irrelevant questions again, Deba Shizuka spoke first.

Gunner explained, "A Noble Phantasm is the ultimate armament of a Heroic Spirit. It's a materialized miracle, the proof of their heroism. The crystallization of humanity's longing for miracles, the most powerful weapon known as the 'Noble Phantasm,' similar to magic. It's a weapon constructed from human imagination. It serves as a Heroic Spirit's armament, symbol, ultimate move, and special attack, and of course, an excellent weapon. Generally speaking, recognizing a Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm reveals their identity. Conversely, knowing their True Name completely exposes their true identity. Therefore, under normal circumstances, no Heroic Spirit would reveal their True Name, lest their weaknesses be discovered. And unless their Noble Phantasm is a weapon, they typically retain their True Name at the very end, delivering a single strike to kill, preventing their identity from being discovered and allowing them to prepare."

"You don't need to understand things like Chaotic Evil and Orderly Good, because they don't actually represent true good and evil. Just like some people do good in the name of evil, while others are good but for some reason do things that outsiders would consider evil."

Everyone nodded in understanding. Good and evil are relative. Sometimes you do evil things, but to others, you are doing good things. Sometimes you do good things, but to others you are actually doing evil things.

Just like the problem that Emiya Kiritsugu faced in the Holy Grail, it is also the problem that Emiya Shirou, as a guardian, faces. In order to protect the majority of people, they kill a few people. So, are they good or evil? This kind of question is impossible to answer.

"Now that we've explained the basics, it's time to discuss other things. For example, the enemies we're dealing with, the three Assassins. I believe there's a mastermind behind them manipulating everything. After all, even though they're Chaotic Evil, no Heroic Spirit would attack ordinary people for no reason."

Gunner looked at Shizuka Deiba and asked, "You should have fought them a few times before. Did you find anything?"

The female reporter interrupted and said, "I know that. It seems there's someone behind them called..."

"and many more!"

Before the female reporter could finish her words, Shizue Deba interrupted her.

"I think we should talk about your identities now. Remember you said before that for human Heroic Spirits like you who don't have any powerful Noble Phantasms, revealing your true name shouldn't be a big deal, right?"

The female reporter was stunned for a moment and did not continue to tell what she knew. Instead, she looked at Gunner expectantly. Now Gunner's identity was what she wanted to know most, and it was also what all the audience and investigators were curious about.

"Our identity? You might as well take a guess. I think the information I revealed before is clear enough." Gunner paused and said with a smile.

Suddenly, there was a wave of speculation on the real name of the hero on the Internet.

[It's so obvious that the kid with blue hair is Andersen. As for the gunman, I don't know much about American history.]

[Who has sufficient knowledge of the American Westward Expansion era? Tell me who the gunman was.]

[As for the American West, I know there's a Daniel Boone who's known as a great hero, but I wonder if it's him.]

[It's very likely. After all, most heroes ascend to the Heroic Spirit after their death, so Daniel Boone definitely qualifies.]

[But Daniel Boone doesn't seem to be a cowboy, he's a soldier. I think the cowboy should be someone like Winters, Shane, Bill, Bronco Billy, or Lingo.]

[Don't be silly, Winters, Shane, and Bill are fictional characters, and Bronco Billy and Linguo are movie characters. They don't really exist.]

[Not necessarily. Don’t just assume that the Phantom of the Opera has a prototype. Maybe they also have a prototype.]

[As for the prototype, I think this hero is Billy the Kid, a famous criminal in the American West. The biography of Billy the Kid's true life, which includes both artwork and real prototypes, is more accurate than those in movies and novels.]

[Agreed. When the cowboy showed up at the library earlier, he said he was a criminal, which fits Billy the Kid's identity.]

Netizens have always had more creative minds than conservative middle-aged and elderly people. In just a short while, they figured out the identities of the two heroes.

Deba Shizuji, Tsuchimiya Masagaku and Isayama Naraku frowned. For them, revitalizing the family and practicing were the most important things. They had no knowledge of Western history, so naturally they could not guess Gunner's identity.

The others all looked like they were thinking carefully, trying to find out Gunner's true identity from the information he revealed.

"Hans Christian Andersen. Hans Christian Andersen. Class is Caster. If you want to know more, read one of my books!" The blue-haired boy stated his real name directly. "I don't expect any wisdom from you, so I'll just speak for myself."

"Hans Christian Andersen, one of the world's three greatest fairy tale writers?"

Arima Takashi said.

"I've speculated about this before. After all, whether it's the Goddess of Luck's overshoes, the flying box, the bronze pig, or the tinderbox that can summon a giant dog, they're all items from Andersen's fairy tales."

"Oh? I recognized you right away. Do you like fairy tales?" Andersen looked at Arima Takamasa.

Arima Takashi nodded slightly and said, "It's just that I've seen more."

Andersen asked, "Oh, looking at you, I can tell without hiding it! You are also a person who loves reading!"

"Indeed, reading is my greatest hobby," Arima Takashi admitted. He then looked at Gunner and said, "Judging from your attire, you must be a heroic spirit from the era of the American Westward Expansion. Plus, since you mentioned earlier that you're qualified to represent an era, I can confirm your identity: William Henry McCarty, the iconic fugitive from the American Westward Expansion era, the quick-shooting Billy the Kid."

"Yes, I am Billy the Kid, appearing in this world as Gunner." Billy the Kid admitted with a smile, "It seems you are indeed a smart person."

Billy the Kid paused, then spoke, "Let's continue with the previous topic. Who are the enemy Heroic Spirits? Do you have any information about them? And the mastermind behind this is still a Heroic Spirit, no matter what. Slaughtering ordinary humans for no reason is not something a Heroic Spirit would do casually."

"We have some basic intelligence, but we don't know the enemy's Noble Phantasms," Shizuka Deiba said seriously. "The enemy's Heroic Spirits are Izo Okada, who wields a sword; The Phantom of the Opera, who possesses hypnotic powers and whose hands have been transformed into claws; and another one, who is very likely Jack the Ripper. However, Jack the Ripper may have memory-related abilities, and I don't have any information about him."

"Eh? Jack the Ripper? What's going on? I clearly remember three heroic spirits attacking us before, but who was the third one?"

"I don't remember either. Do you remember?"

"no impression."

"do not know."

Deba Shizuka's words evoked the memories of the investigators. After they thought about it carefully, their faces changed immediately, because they only remembered the appearance and abilities of the Phantom of the Opera and Okada Izo, and they had no impression of the third Heroic Spirit at all.

[What the hell? Jack the Ripper, the girl in revealing clothes? I remember we discussed the cause of her death before, am I mistaken?]

[Yes, you remembered it wrongly. There was no girl there.]

[+1 for misremembering.]