…
"Waver Velvet."
"For you, I shall conduct a special extracurricular lesson."
"I will personally teach you—without reservation—what it truly means when magi slaughter one another, and the terror and suffering contained within it."
"You should consider yourself honored."
"K—Kenneth… sensei?!"
Waver's voice trembled.
His legs gave out beneath him, and he collapsed onto the ground, clutching his head helplessly with both hands. He clearly didn't even dare face his former teacher.
At that moment—
A large hand suddenly slapped heavily onto Waver's back.
Although the force nearly knocked the breath out of him, it somehow filled him with an overwhelming sense of reassurance.
"Rider?"
Giving Waver a look that clearly said "Leave everything to me,"Iskandar raised his voice toward Kenneth's direction.
"Oi! Magus!"
"From what you said, you originally intended to become my Master instead of this kid, didn't you? If that's the case, that's downright hilarious!"
"The man worthy of being my Master must be a warrior who charges across the battlefield with me."
"A coward who doesn't even have the courage to show himself doesn't qualify at all!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Iskandar's openly mocking laughter echoed loudly.
Kenneth, who had just suffered a humiliating defeat earlier, instantly felt his anger flare up.
He almost wanted to send Lancer out immediately to stab Iskandar's mouth shut.
But when he glanced at the Command Seals on the back of his right hand—one already consumed before it had even warmed up—
Kenneth forced himself to calm down.
If he wanted ultimate victory, the two remaining Command Seals had to be used at the most critical moment.
He absolutely could not waste them like earlier against Saber.
"Master…"
Feeling his lord insulted, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, who remained in Spirit Form, wished to request permission to fight again and reclaim Kenneth's honor.
But Kenneth simply waved his hand dismissively.
He said nothing.
Seeing that the "magus" remained silent for so long, Iskandar laughed even louder.
"Oi! There must be others lurking nearby!"
"All of you hiding in the shadows and watching—if you still consider yourselves true warriors, then come out!"
"The commotion caused by Saber, Lancer, and Archer must have drawn more than just me here!"
"Heroic Spirits summoned by the Holy Grail, gather here now!"
"Cowards too afraid to show their faces will be scorned by Iskandar, the King of Conquerors!"
When Iskandar finished speaking—
Caw! Caw! Caw!
A flock of black crows happened to pass overhead, letting out harsh cries.
Meanwhile—
Kiritsugu Emiya, Maiya Hisau, Hassan of the Hundred Faces, Kirei Kotomine, Matou Kariya, Leon, and Ryuunosuke Uryuu all remained perfectly composed.
Either they stayed silent, or they weren't even present at the battlefield.
"I say…"
"You vermin keep talking amongst yourselves, ignoring my existence and even daring to call yourselves kings."
"What exactly do you take me, the King of Heroes Gilgamesh, for?!"
"The only hero worthy of calling himself king—throughout heaven and earth—is me alone!"
"You stand before me and enjoy the honor of witnessing my presence, yet behave with such disrespect."
"Creatures like you have no right to live!"
Gilgamesh's golden brows twitched violently as he roared in fury.
Then he raised his hand and waved it forward.
Instantly—
The Gate of Babylon, covering most of the sky, unleashed a storm of Noble Phantasms upon everyone present.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
While Gilgamesh vented his rage through indiscriminate bombardment—
Far away, Tohsaka Tokiomi, his Master, accidentally crushed the wine glass in his hand.
His exhausted voice transmitted through the communication link to Kirei Kotomine.
"…This is bad."
"Now that Gilgamesh's True Name has been revealed, the other Masters may easily unite against him."
"Honestly…"
"The legendary oldest Heroic Spirit… why is his personality so arrogant and irritable?"
For the first time, Tokiomi began questioning his life choices—and possibly even the authenticity of his Servant's identity.
How had such a favorable situation suddenly turned into something resembling a disadvantage?
Tokiomi couldn't understand.
…
A true tornado tearing through the parking lot.
When the golden rain of Noble Phantasms finally stopped—
This section of coastline, already split apart earlier by Leon's Holy Sword, was now gloriously reduced to total devastation.
Dust mixed with metal fragments drifted through the air as the scattered treasures of the Gate of Babylon settled.
"Hoh…"
"Not bad."
"At least in terms of strength, I acknowledge that you're somewhat worthy."
Within a 250-meter radius, the only structure still intact was the streetlamp beneath Gilgamesh.
Everything else had been obliterated.
Yet the scene before him still surprised even the King of Heroes.
Leon stood firm, protecting Irisviel and Artoria behind him.
The two women hadn't suffered even the slightest injury.
All the incoming Noble Phantasms had been perfectly deflected by Leon's Holy Sword, never approaching within one meter of them.
As for the Rider faction—
Iskandar hadn't tried to block the attack head-on.
Instead, he used the incredible mobility of the Gordius Wheel to dodge the first wave of Noble Phantasms before launching straight into the sky like lightning.
Aside from a small tear in his red cloak, he had successfully evaded the entire barrage.
"What a terrifying number of Noble Phantasms," Iskandar remarked leisurely.
"I suppose Assassin must have been eliminated by this kind of attack."
Clinging desperately to his thigh, Waver looked like he might wet himself.
For a moment he felt as if he saw his late grandmother waving at him from the afterlife.
Thankfully—
It was only his imagination.
…Or perhaps not.
"Thank you, Leon."
Irisviel stepped closer to check whether Leon had been injured.
She soon noticed a thin cut on his handsome face, where blood slowly seeped out.
Quickly, she channeled magical energy and healed the wound.
It seemed she was worried that Leon might be left with a permanent scar on his face—that would truly be a shame.
Seeing this scene—
Artoria's heart stirred strangely.
For some reason, she wished she could do something for Leon as well—just like Irisviel.
Or perhaps…
She wished that the person standing in Irisviel's place right now was herself.
Earlier, she had almost revealed her identity.
But Leon had immediately stepped forward, shielding both her and Irisviel from Archer's Noble Phantasms.
The feeling of being protected.
The feeling of being able to momentarily set aside the identity of the King of Knights—
And simply rely on someone else as a woman.
For Artoria…
This was the first time she had ever experienced such a thing.
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