"Don't just stand there stunned, bastard! What, are you waiting for an invitation? Move!"
A golden Vimana descended, and a golden man spoke with sheer arrogance.
"…"
Ritsuka and Mash didn't understand at first, but they quickly recognized the Servant before them. He was the oldest King of humanity…
The most ancient epic, the first human pillar—standing upon the Vimana—Gilgamesh.
"Why?"
"Are you still questioning this King's mercy?!"
It was confusing. Was Gilgamesh here to save them? Both of them knew that, given Gilgamesh's personality, this was nothing short of a miracle.
To this King, almost nothing was pleasing to the eye. Everyone was a Mongrel—except his treasures.
Yet now, that very King was offering them aid. Mash and Ritsuka exchanged glances, unsure what to think. But faced with the sharp gaze of Gilgamesh, they had no choice but to leap aboard the ship…
"Thank you…"
"Don't thank me yet, Mongrel!"
Focusing all his attention on the Gate of Babylon, golden Gates continued firing Noble Phantasms without pause as the Vimana rose into the sky…
There was no time. This was a rescue with a strict time limit, and Gilgamesh knew it well. He had to leave now…
Seating himself upon the throne of the vessel, the energy of the Vimana surged, and it accelerated.
"That was close. If it weren't for the King, I'm afraid—"
"It's fine, Mash. The worst is over…"
Only then did Ritsuka and Mash finally let out sighs of relief…
"Are you all right…?"
A gentle voice made them turn their heads. There was another person with them aboard the Vimana.
She was a beautiful young woman with violet hair and eyes—and physically, it was impossible not to notice her very generous chest.
Ritsuka's gaze was drawn to it involuntarily, but he quickly looked away in embarrassment…
"Yes, thank you, we're fine. My name is Ritsuka Fujimaru, and she's my partner, Mash… who are you?"
Blushing, Ritsuka asked cautiously, glancing briefly at the King, who frowned even more deeply, as if something troubled him…
The girl, meanwhile, smiled sweetly.
"It's a pleasure. My name is Sakura Matou, the Master of Archer Blue."
""Blue?!""
Ritsuka and Mash instinctively stepped back. Based on the Director's information, they knew that the enemies in this war were the Blue Faction.
Escaping the wolf's jaws only to step into the tiger's maw shocked them both, but Sakura didn't seem to mind.
"You're from Chaldea, aren't you? Archer told me about you. Thank you for protecting humanity…"
She bowed in gratitude. Sakura had heard of their exploits from Gilgamesh. With his ability to see the future, almost nothing escaped the King's eyes—except that the future he had seen no longer existed, due to the Crown locking the world's fate. Sakura didn't know this, so she misunderstood and couldn't help but admire them a little—people with ideals as great as her Senpai's, saving humanity…
"Wait, are you really not helping them? Aren't you in the same group as that Monster?"
Mash shared Ritsuka's doubts. As the shield, it was up to Mash to take the initiative in situations like this, when trust was uncertain.
"No. I don't want to destroy humanity."
Fortunately, in this timeline Sakura had not yet fallen completely, unlike her parallel self. She was still controllable, still dreaming of being with her Senpai. Faced with a powerful enemy, she had even begged Gilgamesh for help.
"Oh…"
Mash flushed in embarrassment at her misunderstanding, and Ritsuka sighed in relief. Just as he had thought, the Blue Faction wasn't entirely evil. Maybe the Monster was the only anomaly, which greatly reduced the danger of facing seven unknown Servants…
"He's here…"
"—?!"
At that moment, Gilgamesh frowned sharply, and the Vimana swerved violently, narrowly avoiding a sphere of energy.
BOOMMM
The sphere expanded and detonated in the sky, generating a shockwave powerful enough to rattle the barrier surrounding them…
The trio couldn't keep their footing and were thrown to the deck as the shockwave roared past.
"What… what was that?!"
"I don't know, Senpai, but I think we were attacked by a Noble Phantasm…"
[It's not a Noble Phantasm—it's the Monster!]
Romani Archaman's panicked voice came through the communicator. The Monster's energy surged once more into a colossal presence, terrifying Romani…
"Archer…"
Sakura turned anxiously toward the Golden King, who remained solemn.
"I warned you, Mongrel. That thing isn't easy to deal with."
He knew it. From the moment he chose to intervene, there was no turning back. The fury of Original Sin was no light burden—it was something humanity itself had to bear…
"How annoying. No one interferes with my prey…"
The instant thousands of golden Gates opened, Yuki's Sharingan spun.
A black exoskeleton formed around him in an instant. When the projectiles struck, they either sparked off or exploded.
But there were too many—far too many B+-rank or higher Noble Phantasms—so Yuki had to get a little serious…
His power surged. The exoskeleton solidified further, and amid the explosions, a colossal figure rose…
"Susanoo…"
Rooooar…
BOOMMM
Two massive skeletal arms formed, each wielding a black blade. They swung, striking the golden Gates, destroying them and ravaging everything around them…
"Trying to run? Heh…"
Susanoo's transformation was swift. Its height increased, and a tower-sized samurai took shape, forming a jewel with three tomoe at its center…
With his target locked, Yuki smiled and hurled a sphere of energy—an explosion that could rival a Tailed Beast Ball…
"Yasaka Magatama!"
Let's see how you handle absolute force…
BOOMMM
The night sky over Trifas shone brighter than ever as explosions on the scale of nuclear bombs detonated in the atmosphere…
The spectacle illuminated the night brighter than the sun itself…
Yasaka Magatama were like successive Tailed Beast Balls. Gilgamesh was having a hard time. Even though the Vimana flew at extreme speed—surpassing even the fastest modern aircraft—it still couldn't escape the Monster. Yuki could bombard targets from thousands of kilometers away if he wished, and with the Crown, the entire world was his attack zone. There was no escape…
Thousands of golden Gates opened around the Vimana, firing nonstop to intercept the Monster's energy tomoe. Although they managed to intercept every Yasaka Magatama, the shockwaves were no joke. Each explosion weakened the barrier and damaged the Vimana itself…
BOOMMM, BOOMMM
The explosions continued, and Gilgamesh could no longer remain seated. A golden Gate opened beside him, and from it emerged two golden swords. Expressionless, Gilgamesh took them and joined them together, forming a golden bow…
"It's time to awaken Enki…"
This was one of Gilgamesh's two ultimate Noble Phantasms. Unlike a normal Holy Grail War, in this worldwide war Gilgamesh had been summoned at his peak—and he had brought with him many ultimate Noble Phantasms, including Enki and Enuma Elish.
To the point that Enki could now unleash two combined finishing blows…
Instead of the seven-day floods, Gilgamesh chose to use his other attack…
Through his clairvoyance, distance was no obstacle. He saw across kilometers, where a black giant continued to hurl spheres of energy…
"Enki: Star of Destruction."
Drawing his bow to the absolute limit, Gilgamesh released the string, and the arrow crossed kilometers in an instant…
Yuki saw the projectile, of course, but it didn't worry him. Even if he destroyed the arrow, Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasm had already been released. Just as he expected, the arrow fell at his feet—and a beam of light shot into the atmosphere. There, six massive golden arrows encircled a gigantic lance, spinning and fusing as they descended toward their target like a true star of destruction. There was no doubt—once that enormous golden lance struck the ground, the law of destruction within it would detonate, erasing everything around it…
Yuki's Sharingan spun repeatedly. His Susanoo began to grow, and at the same time, a key-shaped lance appeared in his hand.
"Transcend time and space."
'Michael: Rataibu!'
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