Gilgamesh has been defeated.
Turning his gaze from the window, Solomon looked at Marisbury behind him. "Surprising… but not really."
"A bit unexpected."
Marisbury gave a wry smile.
"The battle between Mr. Natsukawa and the King of Heroes was anticipated. Honestly, I wouldn't be shocked if either of them won, but from what you observed… he's barely injured?"
Solomon nodded. "The King of Heroes' defeat makes sense when looking at the Servant's Saint Graph. Those Mystic Eyes are deadly to us, but Mystic Eyes are still a form of Magecraft, so I wouldn't be affected."
That might be the only good news here. With the Ten Rings on his hand, Solomon was immune to Magecraft. Naoki's greatest trump card, his Mystic Eyes, was effectively sealed, as was his Summoning Magecraft.
However, there was bad news too.
"Imaginary Manifestation, the same ability as a True Ancestor, isn't easy to deal with. The only unknown is its upper limit."
"But, King, you have an absolute chance of winning, don't you?" Marisbury smiled. "That's enough. Besides, depending on the situation, we don't necessarily have to fight Mr. Natsukawa. Negotiation is possible."
Though far from the power struggles of the Clock Tower, Marisbury was still a Lord. He knew how to use strategy to maximize his gains. Sometimes, victory didn't require military might or even being acknowledged as a win.
As long as he got what he wanted and achieved his goals, that was victory enough.
The Holy Grail War was no different.
The one who obtains the Holy Grail isn't always the last one standing. Even in defeat, someone could still claim the Grail and fulfill their wish. For that to happen, negotiation between Naoki and Marisbury was crucial.
(To get him to negotiate, my offer is key, and right now, what the Department of Astromancy can offer is…)
Seeing Marisbury carefully calculating future gains and losses, Solomon hesitated briefly but ultimately didn't share the future he foresaw—in that future, no matter the outcome, he and Naoki would inevitably clash.
For Marisbury, fighting wasn't a necessity. But Solomon wanted to face Naoki once, not to defeat him, but to test himself and see if his own ideas could succeed.
If possible, he could then calmly pursue his own affairs.
This was a personal desire, a thought he shouldn't have. As the bearer of the Ten Rings, he shouldn't act for himself. But just this once, he wanted to fulfill his goal.
(Fairy Magus… Let me see if you have what it takes.)
Rubbing his Ten Rings, Solomon looked out the window again, this time downward.
In the darkness of the night, a faint silver silhouette could be seen.
"Master."
"Yes, I leave it to you, King."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
"The King won."
As one of the Clairvoyance trio, Merry could sense Gilgamesh's defeat even from a distance.
"Wow, he's really grown again. The King is truly amazing. If this keeps up, total victory is just a matter of time, right?"
"You seem awfully happy, Merry."
Beside Merry, Morgan leaned against the window with her arms crossed, gazing into the distance. "If he keeps winning, you'll have to marry him. You used to be so against it, so why do you seem so excited now?"
"Did you see it with your Clairvoyance? That the final winner of this Holy Grail War isn't that kid's 'future'?"
"No way, my Clairvoyance isn't that great." Merry smiled, waving her hand. "Besides, I haven't used Clairvoyance in a long time. Spoilers are awful—keeping things spoiler-free is the best way to stay entertained!"
"As for you saying I'm not against marrying… where did you get that idea?"
"From every angle. I even feel like you're a bit eager. But I can't imagine you in a wedding dress. It just doesn't suit you."
Merry gave a faint smile. "Is that so… what if Morgan wants to try wearing a wedding dress too? I could suggest to the King that he marry you as well. Giving Mordred a complete family sounds pretty nice."
"Hah, you're really thinking about it—back to the main topic, Merry. In this Holy Grail War, who do you think will be the winner?"
"Are you asking who the true winner will be? Or who'll get the Holy Grail?"
Merry smiled mysteriously. "If I had to say, the final winner is the King, no doubt. To marry me, the King will fight with all his might to be the last one standing."
The winner?
Morgan understood Merry's meaning. Rising from the window, she left the room without looking back.
"Where are you going?"
"Some people are planning something small. I'm going to keep an eye on them. I can't let that kid be toyed with again, can I? Even if he has the power to crush any conspiracy, being treated like a pawn—he might tolerate it, but I won't."
"Then I'll come with you. As the overseer of this Holy Grail War, I have a duty to protect Masters who've lost their Servants."
"Protect?"
Morgan was immediately amused by Merry's words, but she had to admit, she did need protection right now.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
At the same time, on Sajyou Rei's side.
After confirming Gilgamesh's complete destruction through Magecraft, Rei and Gray both breathed a sigh of relief.
Gilgamesh was no weakling. Even with borrowed power, Angelica had wreaked havoc in the Holy Grail War, let alone his true manifestation. Defeating him early in the War was great news.
But…
"Lia, don't be sad. These two times were just bad luck, unexpected situations."
Seeing Artoria steeped in sorrow beside her, Rei couldn't help but offer comfort.
Yesterday, she couldn't join Naoki and Arthur's fight, and tonight, she couldn't participate in Naoki and Gilgamesh's battle—failing to fulfill her duties as a Servant twice. For the highly responsible Artoria, this was a massive blow!
"No, Rei, I'm not sad… It's just that Master's power is so overwhelming, what am I even summoned for…"
Wasn't this clearly self-doubt?
(Honestly, it's to gather seven Servants to start the Holy Grail War—those words absolutely can't be said, right?)
If spoken, Artoria might spiral further and waver.
Sighing in resignation, Rei reconnected the call to Mordred and Atalanta. "Mordred, Atalanta, you two head back. You've worked hard tonight. Gray will make some late-night snacks—Gray, make a lot, please."
"Sure, leave it to me. Big Sis Lia, can you come with me? I might struggle alone."
"Gladly!"
Seeing Artoria perk up slightly, Rei gave a wry smile.
[By the way, Rei, don't we need to bring Master back?]
"No need for Master, I think. He probably has important business to attend to tonight, especially with two women waiting for him."
At this point, Rei clutched her head slightly—her other self was screaming loudly.