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*****
If Gilgamesh were to ever unleash Ea, the Sword of Rupture, the only way she could block it would be with Avalon, the Everdistant Utopia.
However, while Avalon can negate any attack, it is only capable of protecting a single person. Everyone else would still be caught in the blast.
She felt that no matter how powerful George was, he likely wouldn't be able to withstand Ea, a Noble Phantasm capable of splitting the world itself.
"Countless Noble Phantasms… and Ea, the sword that splits the world…"
After hearing this intelligence regarding Gilgamesh, George didn't show the slightest hint of fear. On the contrary, his eyes lit up with keen interest.
This was a perfect example of "searching far and wide for something, only to have it fall right into your lap."
He had just been thinking that the Noble Phantasms of only seven Servants wouldn't be enough for his research, and now here was a Gilgamesh who could summon the majority of all Noble Phantasms from the Age of Gods.
Among them was a Noble Phantasm powerful enough to split the world. Even if George unleashed his own full power right now, he couldn't achieve the feat of splitting the entire world.
The ability to split a world meant that the power of this Noble Phantasm had already reached the level of a single universe.
However, he wasn't the least bit worried about being unable to block it.
This was because, according to his understanding, the ultimate power of a Noble Phantasm was directly related to the user's own strength.
Based on the level of strength he had observed from Gilgamesh so far, he was certain Gilgamesh couldn't unleash an attack capable of truly splitting the world. At best, its output would be several times stronger than Artoria's Sword of Promised Victory (Excalibur).
If he were to get his hands on it, however, with his magical energy, it might just be possible to unleash the true, full power of Ea and actually split the entire world.
There was another point. Ea was, after all, an external tool. Even if his judgment was mistaken—even if Gilgamesh could unleash the full power of the sword—George could still interrupt him before he activated it. He could even strike before Gilgamesh had the time to take Ea out.
This was the fundamental gap in their power.
External power was, in the end, just external. One's own inherent strength was what mattered most.
After he obtained Ea, he wouldn't even use it as a weapon. His primary goal would be to research the fundamental laws and principles it contained—the very concepts that allowed it to split the world.
Once he had studied it thoroughly, he would be able to launch an attack of similar power relying solely on himself.
Furthermore, only by mastering those fundamental principles could he replicate the effect not just in this world, but in any other world he might visit.
On the other side of the chapel, seeing the sudden arrival of two more Servants, Rin Tohsaka temporarily abandoned her attack on Kirei Kotomine. She and Archer retreated to George's position.
Kirei Kotomine likewise moved to stand beside Gilgamesh.
However, after spotting Artoria, Kirei's gaze shifted and locked onto Shirou Emiya.
"I remember you now. You're the child Kiritsugu Emiya saved that day. So, you are the seventh Master.
Good. Very good. This almost gives me the feeling of reuniting with an old friend."
Back then, when Kiritsugu Emiya was searching through the ruins, he and Gilgamesh had been hiding in the shadows and had seen everything. He just hadn't recalled it until this very moment.
Archer, Saber, and Berserker… with three Servants present, he figured Lancer wouldn't have been able to retreat even if he had wanted to.
"Shinji! Why are you here?"
At this, Shirou Emiya completely ignored Kirei Kotomine, his attention fixed solely on Shinji Matou.
When Shinji Matou saw his "goddess," Rin, standing next to Shirou Emiya, his heart was instantly flooded with jealousy. He replied in a scathing, disdainful tone:
"If even a total waste of space like you can become a Master, why couldn't I? I am the eldest son of the Matou, a family with a long magus lineage and one of the three founding families of the Holy Grail War. Isn't it only natural that I would become one of the Masters in this Holy War?"
"So you were the one who set up that soul-devouring bounded field at the school!"
Rin Tohsaka glared at Shinji Matou, her face contorted in fury.
For the past few days, students had been mysteriously disappearing from the school. Her investigation revealed that someone had established a soul-devouring bounded field on the premises.
This type of bounded field directly devours the souls of anyone who enters it. Typically, only Servants need to rely on consuming souls to strengthen themselves.
Therefore, she had suspected that another Master must be present at the school.
If the person wasn't affiliated with the school, they could have set up the bounded field anywhere else. There would be no reason to place it specifically within the school grounds.
Now that Shinji Matou had revealed himself, it was almost certain that he was the culprit.
It was exactly the kind of despicable thing a person like him would do.
"Hahahaha! Of course I set it up! Using the souls of those base, ordinary people to strengthen my Servant—it's an honor for them! Rin, stop being so naive. You have no chance of winning this. If you surrender to me right now, I'll be good to you. I'll even let you become my future wife. Otherwise, from now on, you'll only get to serve me as my slave!"
"The eldest son of one of the three founding families, and yet he's just a failure who doesn't even possess Magic Circuits. I really don't see what you have to be so happy about."
Watching the wildly arrogant Shinji Matou, George mercilessly exposed his secret.
"What… what did you say?"
Having his secret exposed so bluntly, Shinji Matou's entire body froze stiff. Immediately after, veins bulged on his forehead in a mask of fury.
George, however, continued speaking, completely unbothered:
"I see you've been using that spellbook in your hand to supply your Servant with magical energy. It seems the real Master isn't you after all. You're just an impostor."
"You… you lowly, inferior piece of trash! How dare you talk to me like that! Rider! Kill him! Kill him for me!"
Having had his deepest shame broadcast, Shinji Matou frantically ordered Rider Medusa to attack George.
Although Medusa inwardly despised Shinji Matou, she had no choice but to follow the command and launch an attack.
However, before she could even take a single step, the head of Shinji Matou, standing right beside her, instantly exploded. His body collapsed lifelessly to the floor.
This sudden event caused everyone's gaze to snap and focus intently on George.
Shirou Emiya and Rin Tohsaka stared in disbelief. From the moment they met him until now, George had given them the impression of being gentle and exceptionally good-tempered. They had never expected that he would kill someone so terrifyingly, without a trace of hesitation or mercy.
As for Kirei Kotomine, his pupils contracted violently. He hadn't sensed George emitting any magical energy at all, assuming he was just an ordinary person. He never imagined he was actually such a powerful magus.
Shinji Matou's head had just exploded, and Kirei hadn't detected a single thing. This proved that the man's level of magecraft was far, far above his own.
As for the last individual, Gilgamesh, his face broke into a look of genuine interest.
In that brief instant, he had detected a powerful surge of spiritual energy erupting from George. It was precisely that spiritual power that had directly detonated Shinji Matou's head.
"I am generally a very tolerant person toward normal people. However, I never show any mercy to scum."
George slowly rose from the pew.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is George, and I am Artoria's Master. I hope you will all choose to surrender voluntarily. Do not put up a pointless resistance, lest you end up just like him."
With a wave of his hand, the sealed and unconscious form of Lancer was unceremoniously dumped from his personal dimension onto the floor.
"So, it was you!"
Kirei Kotomine finally realized his mistake. The seventh Master wasn't Shirou Emiya. It was this man, George—someone he had never even heard of before.
According to his personality, in a situation like this—being completely ignorant of the enemy's capabilities and in a passive position—he should have ordered a decisive retreat.
But he knew, facing such a blatant provocation, Gilgamesh would absolutely never agree to retreat.
(End of Chapter)