Fate Of A Gamer

[You have rested in a luxurious bed. HP, MP, and stamina fully recovered!]

"Mhm…" Slowly, I crack my eyes open to see the familiar notification pop up. I smile at it, extremely relieved to see the blue screen pop up with that little jingle. It means I'm not dead yet, and isn't that just the best?

"Nn…" But the bed just feels so good, you know? I don't think I've ever slept on a bed this comfy. Heck, even the notification classifies the bed as 'luxurious', so it must be true, right? Ah~, I think I'll just take a quick nap…

That peace doesn't last.

Ryoji.

Saber Alter.

Enki.

Tainted heart.

Angra Mainyu.

Curses.

Death.

DEATH.

My eyes snap open, and they remain unblinking as my memories pour back, my near photographic memory forcing me to relive every single moment.

I force my cry down.

Silently, I rise from the bed, the bed suddenly feeling far colder than it'd been. Cold sweat pools in the back of my neck, and I take a deep breath to sort everything out, forcing my tense muscles to relax. It isn't an easy process, but I eventually manage, pushing the tension away with a gentle sigh.

'Yeah. That all happened, didn't it?'

A hesitant chuckle leaves me as I pinch the bridge of my nose. The entire plan was dangerous, relying completely on [Morningstar] protecting me from the pressure of all the world's evils. If...If it wasn't strong enough, I would've been swallowed, my soul taken and broken down by the rampant malice dwelling inside Angra Mainyu.

I don't really remember much after I touched Angra Mainyu. In fact, it feels like some of my memories are missing, as if some parts of the film reel are suddenly gone. Most of my memories from when I first came into the Nasuverse are still there, thankfully, but the rest aren't so lucky. The memories of who 'Tsunaka Hanami' was before I took over is patchy at best, and the memories 'me' that came from that other world is filled with holes as well.

Seems like I didn't come out completely.

Sighing, I shake my head. There's no point in stressing over what is lost. For now, .

'Where am I?'

I take a look around me, and my surroundings are adequate, with only the extremely comfy I'm on standing out. I seem to be in a bedroom of some sort, though there aren't any pictures or mementos that can immediately point out who this room might belong to, and I don't really want to use my mystic eyes at the moment.

With a regretful sigh, I peel off the comfortable blanket I've been sleeping under and stand. I do some quick stretches, just to get my blood pumping an' all, before I look out the one window in this room, which only leads out towards the vast ocean on the other side.

My enhanced hearing isn't catching anything either, so there isn't anyone in about 650 meters.

Which is...strange. I've never really been alone, even back before I've been dropped into this insanity, so it's a new feeling.

Since no one's around, and there doesn't seem to be any dangers nearby, I sit back down, popping open my status screen to see the backlog of notifications that came up when I was unconscious.

And, oh boy, there's a lot!

[You have slain [Angra Mainyu]! 5,000,000,000 Exp gained]

[You have gained [Accursed Fragment of Delusions]!]

[You have leveled up x2!]

[You have gained 10,000,000,000 Exp, [[Kaleidoscope] Skill Book]!]

[You have leveled up x3!]

[Extra Mission of Quest [Incarnation of the Sword; Emiya Shirou] has been completed!]

[You have gained 10,000,000,000 Exp, [Mysterious Item Bundle]!]

[You have leveled up!]

Okay, there's actually still some more after this, but I'll just split them.

This is...yeah. I actually somewhat forgot I even had this quest, but my lord, I can bȧrėly keep myself from breaking from my grin. I mean, 25 billion Exp, and [Kaleidoscope]!? Dude, I feel like I'm cloud nine right now!

And that's not even counting the other items!

Then again, I guess after that entire ordeal, I suppose some sort of reward is expected. Still...this feels just a tad crazy.

Umu, I'll just quickly move on for now.

[Quest [End of Zero] has been completed!]

[You have gained [Fragments of Heaven]!]

[Extra mission of Quest [End of Zero] has been completed!]

[You have gained [The Holy Grail]!]

Yep. That extra reward isn't lying in any shape of form. I literally have the Holy Grail in my inventory. Granted, it's currently inactive and empty, but it's still the damned Holy Grail, you know, the thing that can gather enough magical energy to supposedly punch a hole through reality to reach Akasha.

Yeah. That one.

The [Fragments of Heaven] is a bit of a mystery though, since it's description doesn't say much. I guess I'll just use my mystic eyes to analyze it later.

Now, a couple more notifications!

[Due to certain [Quest] completions, your character sheet has received an upgrade]

...Woah.

I don't really have any words to explain this. I mean, like, putting my stat doubling for now, having the possibility of adding another [Class] into my roster, AND being able to change my [Race] as well? What [Races] can I even change into?

Ah, so many possibilities~, but! I'll refrain myself from instantly diving into the changes in my status.

There's still three more messages left.

[You are the winner of the [Fourth Holy Grail War]. Though you were unconscious, the Grail has picked up on the wishes you had within your heart and acted accordingly. Every single servant that you consider allies have become fully corporeal, given physical bodies for them to live]

[Through hardships you persevered. Through darkness you pushed through. Through the painful truth you marched on. Even as the curses of the world bit on you, tore your psyche into rags, you remained steadfast, fighting against an enemy deemed invincible even by the system. For that, and many turbulent struggles you have gone through, I thank you. Congratulations, [Gamer]]

[You have gained the skill [Enlightenment of the Sacred Fig]!]

The final message feels almost...personal, and I can't help but smile and tear up a little.

It's...I'm just reminded of everything that's happened. On the very first day, when I came into this world and met Shirou, a spark was lit that burned into a giant forest fire of events, and it's always been ride after ride with very few breaks in between. We've always been on our toes, and even on the breaks we had, my mind was filled with improving myself for the dangers to come.

And now, it's done. This arc of the story is finished.

"Ah, this is bad…" Crap, I can't stop the tears from falling. Months of tension and worry has been lifted from my shoulders, and...god, I feel so liberated. I let myself silently cry, over a job well done, over a task finished, over just, everything.

I let my tears loose for some more time, before I take a deep breath, turning to look out through the window with a teary smile.

It's over, isn't it?

~~~

[Nagasaki]

A fairly large prefecture, located in the islands of the rising sun. Years before, in the second world war, a powerful atomic bomb had been dropped within this region, creating an explosion humanity had ever seen at that moment.

Now, it's regrown and flourished once more.

Note: You are currently located at the southern edge of the city, atop a small island not too far from the continent of Japan. Other individuals detected in a 645 metre radius: 0. Current threat level: Safe

Huh, so I'm in Nagasaki…That's quite some distance from Fuyuki.

To go back a bit, after some time spent calming myself down, I decided to leave the room, which turned out to be a single-roomed cottage located on an island in the middle of seemingly nowhere. Of course, I now know that it's actually close to Nagasaki, but it's still quite the jarring switch in scenery after the long time I've spent in urban locations.

Also, you might've noticed the extra note on the bottom of the notification there. That's actually an additional effect of my new skill, but I'll save the skill descriptions for next time. We've all just gone through the climax, so I think we can save the details for later, yeah?

But that all aside, I wonder what I should do? I mean, this place is relaxing and I can probably spend some more time just lazing on the sand and watching the clouds go by, but I don't think I can ever be that still.

Then, as I look to the oceans, I spot a group of fish casually swim by, their forms somewhat distorted by the moving waves.

An idea springs into my head.

Hey, why don't I spend my time fishing?

It sounds rather out of place, but I honestly think that it'll be fun! I've never really fished in my life, and I'm feeling rather hungry myself, so it'll kill two birds with one stone. Sure, I can just buy food from the [Item Shop], but that's boring! Catching my own food and cooking it myself sounds way more engaging!

Of course, I have no knowledge on how to cook either, but new experiences like these are the spices of life, right?

So, using a random stick I found on the island and some string I bought from the [Item Shop], I begin creating my crude fishing rod.

Until it suddenly isn't a crude fishing rod.

[Bronzen Fishing Rod]

Rank D

A simple wooden fishing rod created from wood and string, an ancient but effective tool used from the middle to late Bronze Age of human history. Though simple in its making, it was crafted and molded by ancient magic, turning it into an extremely effective tool.

Fish catching efficiency: 200%

Chance of losing caught items: 2%. Chance increases if the caught item is heavy or moving.

Durability: 100%

Creator: Tsunaka Hanami

...Yeah, kinda forgot about a certain skill called [Age of Babylon], the one that makes anything I create at least Rank D in quality. I can't help but smile wryly as I inspect the fishing rod I made, seeing how its wooden body has somehow gained a clean polish despite me bȧrėly doing anything to it.

Kinda crazy that I would've missed this skill if I didn't use my mystic eyes on Gilgamesh.

With my rod ready, the next item I need is a chair.

Of course, I'm making the chair myself as well!

I pull out one of the remaining logs I have in my inventory and begin carving several planks with a random saw I have lying in my inventory. Planks made, I return the cut log and the saw back into my inventory. With the magic of [Alteration], I combine all the planks and a long strip of cloth I have into a nice beach chair for me to sit on.

With this, my setup is complete!

Placing the beach chair on the shoreline, I sit on it, trying to find the optimal sitting position for this. After the position is found, I buy a quick bucket of bait from the shop, and tying a ball of it onto the end of my string, I throw the tied bait into the ocean.

Or at least I tried, because as soon as I do so the end of the string flies up instead, the tied bait breaking off the string and dropping into the waters. I stare blankly at it, before I sigh.

Seems like I released the string a bit too early, causing the bait to fly up instead of forward. Well, that, and I put a bit too much energy into it.

The professionals make it look so simple man…

With my lesson learned, I attach another ball of bait onto the end of the string and fling it into the ocean waters. It still isn't the best, with the bait still going rather high into the air, but it at least lands back into the waters correctly, bobbing in the ocean and waiting for some unknowing sea creature to latch onto it.

[Due to certain actions, you have gained the skill [Fishing]!]

And there you go!

Now, time to wait.

~~~

And wait I did. Hours flew by as I sat by the beach, occasionally propping up from my seat to reel in whatever bit onto the bait and storing my loot into my inventory. Then I'd tie another ball of bait onto the string, throw it into the ocean, wait until another fish bites the bait, and the cycle repeats.

It was noon when I first woke up.

It's evening now, with the sun slowly dipping beyond the horizon, its orange light scattering across the rolling waves. I'm still sitting on the beach chair I made, waiting for another fish of some sort to come and bite onto the bait. And while that's going on, I'm roasting several of the fishes I caught atop a campfire I made earlier.

[Due to certain actions, you have gained the skill [Cooking]!]

Oh, hey there.

After some time, the fishes are fully roasted (I think), and I begin eating, taking little bites across the now crispy skin. They taste...bland, disgustingly so. They're not bad mind you, but I guess I've become too used to Shirou's absolute god-like food. However, food is food, and I'm hungry, so I tough through the experience and eat them all.

"Ack…" Finishing the final roasted fish, I swiftly pull out a bottle of water and down it all, dousing my tongue with the taste of clean water.

The bland fishy taste remains.

Uuf, starting to have regrets on not just buying food from the item store…

"I doubt those tasted good." A familiar voice says cheekily, and I sigh.

"They don't." I say as I turn to meet Gilgamesh, who'd recently arrived with her [Vimana] and landed on the island. "It just tastes...bland."

"I can imagine." With her piece said, she pulls out a chair of her own from her treasury and sits beside me, looking out towards the slowly setting sun in the distance.

As she sits there, bathed by the light of the setting sun, I find myself silenced. The wind blows and her golden hair waves along, sparkling like stars. The light shines on her, her eyes appearing almost a gentle orange, and as she turns to me with a smile I find myself in the face of true beauty, one that seduced even the gods.

How can I sit before one like so?

"You truly are interesting." She says, leaning slightly closer. "A human with strength reminiscent of the ages of old, one whose potential stretches beyond even what I can see." She looks into my eyes, smiling. "A humble human, one whose mind remains unclouded by the temptations of the world, one whose soul remains despite the curses it'd taken."

"You are a diamond, scarred yet beautiful. Never let anyone tell you otherwise, not even yourself."

Slowly, I nod, fearing that my words would fail me. It...feels rather strange to be praised so heavily, especially by someone like Gilgamesh, but her words make me feel light and giddy, and I can't help but smile.

And I'm pretty sure I was blushing at that moment, but whatever.

We spend the rest of the day simply sitting there, occasionally delving into idle talk as we watch the sun set, and the night overtake the sky, with stars glittering from far above.