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Chapter 434 - Chapter 434 - Vol. 6 - Chapter 68: Going to Battle

The goal for the final battle with Tiamat was straightforward:

Hold off the Primordial Mother long enough for Ereshkigal to open the underworld passage beneath Uruk.

And afterward—

"I know. After that, we push Mother into the Underworld, right?"

Ishtar, having regained control of her body, responded coolly before soaring into the sky alongside Maanna.

"Are you certain that's enough? If Ishtar doesn't step in, and Tiamat reaches Uruk—" Romani began. "The original plan factored in Ishtar's combat strength."

His concern was reasonable; everyone understood the weight behind it.

"We'll deal with that when it happens. After all, we're facing the Goddess Tiamat," Shiomi assured them. "Our vanguard remains the same as yesterday: me, Artoria, and Quetzalcoatl. The Jaguar Warriors will fill in for Ereshkigal."

They planned to fight from the skies on Quetzalcoatl's Pterosaurs, though the number of Laḫmu guarding Tiamat made their offensive still quite thin.

"Beyond Shiomi and Artoria, we lack enough ranged combat support," pointed out Hakuno Kishinami.

"We can't risk sending others," Shiomi replied, believing Hakuno was asking to add more to the strike team. He looked at his Chaldea companions. "Casters should do what Casters do. Especially Marie—your astromancy magecraft needs a stable environment, doesn't it?"

"...Yes..." Olga Marie quietly responded, fully aware of her heavy responsibility. Even pushing her magic circuits to the limit, she could sustain her celestial magecraft for barely a minute—a drop in the bucket.

"No, what I meant was—" Hakuno started again, but Gilgamesh cut in with pride:

"I shall join Hakuno in battle. I will stand with you to repel Tiamat."

"Wait—if Gilgamesh leaves Uruk, the activation of the Dingir seals—" Romani protested. Even though soldiers remained to operate the 360 Dingir around the city, casualties were inevitable. Only Gilgamesh could command those treasure-fueled weapons effectively.

"Worry not," came a second voice of Gilgamesh. Everyone looked toward the inner hall and saw him emerge, dressed in lighter garments, with a concerned Siduri trailing behind. She meant to support him, but he gently refused.

"Oh? Finally awake, my past life king?" Servant Gilgamesh teased with a playful smile.

"It's not as though I'm ready to die yet. For Uruk's sake—even beyond death, I will still serve." The living Gilgamesh replied.

Thus stood the duality of the King of Heroes: one in life, one as Servant. The sealed King of Heroes had finally awakened—and for everyone, it was a spark of renewed hope before the storm.

"Is that so? Then we'll follow Hakuno's plan. Servant Gilgamesh will join us in intercepting the enemy. Once the King of Heroes awakens, he'll take command of Uruk's defenses and wield the 'Melammu Dingir'.'" Shiomi got straight to the point.

"Let's go, Siduri."

Though his voice betrayed the fatigue from just awakening after being sealed, Gilgamesh still rushed to his post with Siduri.

Time was short. At the break of dawn, Tiamat would undoubtedly begin her assault again. While they made their final preparations here, Tiamat had likely already unleashed the "Chaos Tide" and reached the land.

Shiomi and the others departed on Quetzalcoatl's pterosaur, flying behind Gilgamesh's radiant ship—the Vimana.

Back during the battle against the sea monster in the Fourth Holy Grail War, Shiomi had seen Gilgamesh overlooking the battlefield from this Noble Phantasm. Yet, Gilgamesh hadn't used it in the final battle of that war.

Perhaps it was because he had other means of flight, albeit not as fast.

Looking down, the Mesopotamian plains were already submerged by the Chaos Tide. Only a few rocky outcrops remained above the surface.

"Leave the ones on the ground to me! You guys focus on the ones flying up top, nya!"

With that, Jaguar Warrior dove downward with her pterosaur, charging directly at the Laḫmu on the ground.

Shiomi had worried at first that she was throwing her life away, but upon seeing her move freely among the Laḫmu, he realized there was nothing to fear.

After all, she was a Servant imbued with the Divided Spirit of a Chief God.

"No time to worry about the others—the first wave's coming!" Quetzalcoatl shouted.

Though Tiamat's form could only just be made out in the darkened sky and the smoke of the Chaos Tide, the sheer number of Laḫmu—so dense they couldn't be counted—was already pressing on Shiomi.

Now, it wasn't Tiamat being held back—it was them.

"As expected of the Primordial Mother... she gave birth to this many Laḫmu in just a single day." Gilgamesh, dressed as he was in the climax of the Fifth Holy Grail War, stood atop the Vimana. With a snap of his fingers, nearly a hundred Gates of Babylon opened. "What do you plan to do, Hakuno?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're breaking through." Hakuno gripped the armrests tightly.

The Vimana, in fact, had the function of locking on to its designated passengers.

"Well said! Then let this king carve the path to—!"

Before Gilgamesh could finish, a barrage of magical bullets rained down, piercing and blasting the Laḫmu that had entered the Gate of Babylon's range.

Ishtar.

She had flown ahead before their departure, but now appeared nearby—starting her attack even earlier than them.

"Even now, she's still trying to outdo this king. Possessing a human doesn't change her stubbornness." Gilgamesh didn't seem bothered, and swung his hand forward.

Countless Noble Phantasms launched, slamming into the Laḫmu in the sky, clustered like a massive flock of birds, triggering chain explosions.

The Laḫmu rushing toward them were completely annihilated. The attack carved out a wide flight corridor—now the weakest point in the swarm guarding Tiamat.

No words were needed. Shiomi immediately understood Gilgamesh's strategy.

"Break through along that path! Hold on tight!"

Primordial Runes lit up on the pterosaur's back. Empowered by Quetzalcoatl's command, the beast felt lighter than ever, let out a piercing shriek, then shot forward past the Vimana—rushing down the still-open passage.

...

(100 Chapters Ahead)

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