"Here I come. Good luck..."
"Hmph. This Queen will handle it..."
At the same time Kotori, Miku, and Origami were fighting the Servants of the Black Faction, Natsumi opened another portal, and once again two women stepped out.
One of them wore a beautiful dress of black feathers. Her bare feet touched the ground, and an intoxicating fragrance spread through the air. The other wore a cloak that concealed her face. Natsumi blinked at the sight of two women with omnipotent beauty walking side by side.
Since coming to Yuki's Crystal Palace, Natsumi had been surrounded by beauties. Even though she had regained some confidence with her "Onee-san" form, she knew there were still women she couldn't help but envy...
Inori, as the perfect Eve, possessed a beauty that transcended the world. Jasmine, like a budding flower, grew more radiant with each passing day. And Queen Eggy—the arrogant woman clad in black feathers.
Those three were undoubtedly the most beautiful of all. And now there was another woman whose beauty rivaled theirs. Natsumi couldn't help feeling a little jealous...
However, when she remembered that none of those three had reached the Throne, Natsumi puffed out her chest with renewed confidence. No matter what transformation awaited her after Yuki controlled the Requiem, her own beauty would transcend everything as well. That thought put her at ease—and made her smug. The Throne was hers, and no one could take it from her...
With that in mind, Natsumi returned to the Spiritual World in a good mood.
"So this is the Greater Grail..."
The place where Natsumi opened the portal was the basement of Yggdmillennia Castle.
It was where the Greater Grail fed on the Mana Veins—the very Greater Grail that originally supplied mana and served as the cup that sparked the Great Holy Grail War. Now, it was nothing more than a part of the World Holy Grail.
"I won't deny that it's impressive, but this Queen has possessed far better treasures..."
For Eggy, who came from a noble lineage, the treasures she had seen were as powerful as the stars themselves.
A Greater Grail couldn't move her. Using her power as an Omniscient, she sealed the Greater Grail within a barrier. At the same time, the Hooded Woman began creating objects.
"Time to work. We'll pierce this 'World'..."
"As you command, Milady Queen."
"What is going on?! Saber, Berserker, Archer... you..."
Vlad III was horrified by what he was seeing. After Miku played, those three Heroes were now obeying her orders...
This was bad—no matter how one looked at it.
"Darnic, hurry! Order them to use their Command Spells!"
If it was mental control, then a Command Spell should be enough to wake them—or so he believed...
[Use Command Spells? Of course. In the name of the Command Spell, Lancer, I order you to assist Saber!]
"What are you doing, Darnic?!"
Unfortunately for Vlad III, his body didn't obey his will. The Command Spell activated, and his Noble Phantasm helped Siegfried jump even higher...
Like a powerful brainwashing effect, not only the Servants but also the Masters fell victim to it.
As a Saver and a B-rank Anti-Hero, any human or Servant with mana and Magic Resistance below rank A would inevitably fall into Miku's grasp.
As for Iskandar—the target of Miku's hatred—she didn't bother controlling him. On the contrary, the vision of the Horn of War became even more terrifying...
Miku intended to shatter his confidence.
[In the name of the Command Spell, Rider, I order you to destroy Rider of the Green!]
And Lancer wasn't the only one affected by a Command Spell.
Vlad III and Astolfo weren't affected by Miku's song, but Command Spells were different...
"Master! What are you doing?! Don't do this!"
Even with his high Magic Resistance, Astolfo was still forced to seize control of his Hippogriff...
[In the name of the Command Spell, Rider and Lancer, I order you to stop!]
Fortunately for Vlad III and Astolfo, the Masters weren't the only ones with Command Spells. Jeanne waved her Flag and stepped in front of Vlad III, who smiled at her gratefully...
"Mouu~ Dear, you really shouldn't interfere with my hunt."
Miku puffed out her cheeks in anger, but Jeanne ignored her.
"Saver! Release everyone at once, or I will be forced to use a Command Spell!"
"Go ahead. Use it however you like. You can't stop us..."
Floating beside Miku, Origami didn't care about the threat. For many Rulers, acting as arbiters meant having the authority to disqualify Masters and Servants who broke the rules, send them back to the Throne of Heroes, or order a hunt against the offending Servant.
But Yuki didn't care about that. Command Spells were nothing more than useless decorations to him and the Spirits. Even if the other Servants united against him, Yuki wouldn't mind in the slightest.
Origami knew this. That was why she urged Jeanne to use them.
"....."
Jeanne bit her lip. She knew her threat was meaningless. This monster wasn't something that could be stopped through conventional means.
"You leave me no choice!"
Raising her Flag high, the Command Spells on her body lit up. She connected to the World Holy Grail, and her voice traveled across the world...
[My name is Jeanne d'Arc. I have come to this World War as Ruler, and as the Arbiter of this war, I invoke my authority under the rules. The Master of Blue Berserker has broken the rules of the World Holy Grail. The survival of humanity is now at risk... I call upon all Masters and Servants to halt this World War until Blue Berserker is eliminated! Those who offer their aid will be rewarded with two Command Spells!]
If possible, Jeanne hadn't wanted to do this. She had wished to remain neutral in this dangerous war.
But when faced with a monster that threatened humanity itself, Jeanne had no choice...
"Oh? So the impartial Arbiter finally acts... Hehe, very well. It doesn't matter if they come for us. As parents, we'll educate our children..."
A bloodthirsty smile curled Kotori's lips as she spun her halberd. Her lust for battle flared once more—Servants were the perfect targets to test her new strength. Miku and Origami smiled in response...
"Breaking the rules? What did you do this time, Tohsaka Rin?"
"Rin, confess. Don't worry—we'll try to kill you painlessly."
Jeanne was linked to the World Holy Grail, so her voice was heard by every Master and Servant in this war, no matter where they were. It was no surprise that Luviagelita and Illya heard it as well.
Riding atop the Giant Rabbit, both of them turned to look at Rin's shocked face.
"I don't want to die! I've been with you the whole time! I didn't do anything! And that look in your eyes is really dangerous! Stop staring at me like that!"
Rin panicked. She already knew she was a target of the Counter Force, but becoming a target for all the Servants at once was far too much.
Rin wanted to cry....
"It's true. Miss Gorilla has been with me since yesterday..."
"If that's true, then why does Ruler want to kill you, Rin?"
"I want to know too!"
Being targeted by all the Servants in this war was bad—at least for an ordinary group.
But they were different. Each of them possessed a powerful Servant.
A God Killer, a mother who gave birth to Genesis, and an even more horrifying monster. As long as the other Masters weren't idiots, they wouldn't dare attack them alone. At the very least, they would need to form a large group—and even then, victory wouldn't be guaranteed.
There was no fear on their faces, only curiosity over how Rin—the biggest coward of them all—had managed to anger the Arbiter.
"Caster! Do you know anything?"
With no other options, Rin turned to her Omniscient Caster.
[Hya~ you don't need to worry about anything, Rinrin-chan. It's just a small conflict between the Black Faction and Ruler. Nothing serious.]
"A conflict?! What's going on? Tell me everything!"
[Well~ since you insist...]
For Nia, there was nothing wrong with explaining the entire process of the invasion of Yggdmillennia Castle. Even if Rin knew, there was nothing she could do about it.
"What?! They attacked Yggdmillennia Castle?! Are they insane?! What were they thinking?! The war hasn't even started yet!"
At a point where the war hadn't officially begun, attacking a faction was the same as painting a target on one's back. No wonder Ruler now wanted her dead.
All because of her disobedient Servants.
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