"Is that so? Even Rider has arrived." In the dimly lit underground workshop, the elegantly dressed man frowned, his gaze dark.
At present, the known Servants were Saber, Lancer, Rider, Assassin, and... that troublesome familiar of his, Archer.
What would happen next...? Knowing Archer's temperament, Tokiomi Tohsaka smiled bitterly, feeling none of the excitement of heroes gathering.
If someone were to anger that King...
Thinking this, Tokiomi Tohsaka could not help raising his hand.
Three blood-red Command Spells gleamed.
"Both sides, lower your weapons. You stand before a King!"
The giant spoke loudly and unhurriedly, his voice as thunderous as a chariot racing across the heavens. His eyes shone brightly, and his sheer force of presence seemed enough to force apart the sword and spear locked in confrontation.
After suppressing the auras of the two Servants, Iskandar, who had arrived by chariot, coughed lightly and continued as though proclaiming some great event:
"I am Iskandar, the King of Conquerors. I have manifested in this Holy Grail War as Rider, the Cavalry!"
He said it!
He actually revealed his true name!
Everyone present was stunned. On the battlefield of the Holy Grail War, one's true name was the key to being defeated. No Servant would possibly expose it willingly.
It was like Siegfried exposing his back or Achilles baring his heel—an absolute invitation to death!
The most shocked of all was Webber, crouched in the driver's seat.
"Y-you... what the hell is going through your head? You idiot!"
"That is how a King of Conquerors ought to be—open and magnificent."
A hearty laugh drew near as a young man rode a flashy motorcycle into this gathering place of heroes, sparing Webber the danger of having his head blown apart with a flick of a finger.
"Besides, Rider's Noble Phantasm is far too conspicuous. Rather than let people recognize it so easily, it is better to be frank and announce our arrival."
"It is a provocation too, isn't it? As if to say, 'Even if I tell you who I am, there is nothing you can do about it.'" Irisviel smiled bitterly.
Before everyone's eyes, Sakutsuki removed his helmet without concealing his face in the slightest, openly meeting the gazes of the Heroic Spirits.
"Master Sakutsuki, greetings to you all. Don't mind me. I'm just here to watch the show."
"A Master?" Lancer raised a brow, twin spears in hand. "Where is your Servant? Coming here alone is quite dangerous, you know."
"Lancer, do not underestimate him." Unexpectedly, Saber warned her opponent.
"Oh?" The leader of the Knights of Fianna lifted his eyes, about to examine the young man more closely, when Rider interrupted him.
The red-haired giant clapped his hands sharply. Once he had drawn everyone's attention, he stated his purpose in a relaxed, friendly tone:
"I know you have all come to fight one another for the Holy Grail, but before we clash, I have a question. Would you like to join my army and yield the Holy Grail to me? Then I can regard you as friends and share with you the joy of conquering the world."
It was an absurdly nonsensical proposal. Saber was so stunned that she did not even get angry, while Lancer across from her was equally at a loss for words.
Only then did they break through the divide of time and truly realize that the figure before them was the renowned "King of Clubs."
Iskandar, the King of Conquerors, was one of the foremost Heroic Spirits in all of world history. The lands he conquered ranked second among all kings throughout history, surpassed only by Genghis Khan Temujin and exceeding even Attila, the Scourge of God. He possessed the peerless legend of carving out the greatest empire in the shortest time.
His brief life of thirty-three years left behind endless tales of conquest. In human history, no one had ever been so eager to fulfill the ambition of conquering the world.
And now, this king who had conquered all his life had reined in his horse and extended an olive branch to them.
Perhaps this king's gaze had already turned toward this vast world, and this Holy Grail War was merely a tiny corner destined to be crushed beneath his iron hooves. That was why he ignored the rules of the Holy Grail War and casually invited the Heroic Spirits to conquer the world alongside him.
If it had been an ordinary person, they surely would have been won over by Iskandar's grand spirit.
Yet among the Heroic Spirits present, which one was not a warrior tempered by blood and fire, with a will as firm as steel?
The proposal was far too fantastical. Saber was so angry that she did not know what to say, while Lancer standing opposite her still seemed unable to grasp the situation, unsure how to react.
Iskandar, the King of Conquerors, truly was an extraordinary Heroic Spirit. In all of human history, no one had come closer than him to realizing the dream and ambition of conquering the world.
But no matter how great he was, this arrogant proposal was another matter entirely. He had suddenly appeared, loudly announced his name, and demanded others submit without even fighting. Such unprecedented behavior simply ignored the conventions of the Holy Grail War, making it difficult to tell whether it was a wise decision or a foolish act.
"Your courage in revealing your name earns my respect, but forgive me, I cannot accept your proposal."
Lancer shook his head with a bitter smile, though there was not the slightest trace of amusement in his eyes. His blade-sharp threatening gaze met the King of Conquerors' condescending stare, sparks flying between them.
"I will only offer the Holy Grail to the new lord with whom I exchanged vows in this life, and that person will never be you, Rider."
"Did you interrupt my duel with Lancer merely to deliver such ridiculous nonsense?"
Saber spoke after Lancer. Unlike the handsome spearman, she did not have even the faintest smile on her face. To the serious and earnest Saber, Rider's proposal itself had already made her deeply displeased.
"Your joke has gone too far, King of Conquerors. As a knight, I find such humiliation unbearable."
Faced with the intensely hostile gazes of both Saber and Lancer, Rider seemed somewhat troubled as he muttered and rubbed his temples with a knuckled fist. The action looked amusing, yet did nothing to diminish his imposing presence.
"...Could the terms be negotiated?"
"Shut up!"
Saber and Lancer refused in unison. Saber added unhappily, "I am the ruler of a nation, responsible for all of Britannia. No matter how great an emperor you may be, I could never serve beneath you."
"Oh? You say you are the King of Britannia?"
Rider seemed extremely interested in Saber's words, raising his brows dramatically.
"What a surprise. I never imagined the renowned Knight King would be such a young girl."
"Would you care to taste this young girl's sword, King of Conquerors?"
As though a dragon's reverse scale had been touched, Saber gripped her sword with both hands. The fighting spirit radiating from the blade was even stronger than when she had faced Lancer. Rider frowned and let out a deep sigh.
"Negotiations have broken down. What a pity. Truly regrettable."
It was not only Saber and Lancer who found the King of Conquerors' behavior absurd. Even the watchers hidden in the shadows could not help sighing softly.
"The world was nearly conquered by an idiot like that?" Kiritsugu Emiya said speechlessly, moving his sniper scope away from Iskandar and Webber as though he could not bear to watch.
Meanwhile, another Master finally recovered from his own Servant's outrageous behavior.
"Rider!"
Under the hostile stares of the two Servants, Webber's panicked voice cracked:
"Look what you've done now. Going on about conquest and all that, and now everyone wants to beat you up... Did you seriously think you could take Saber and Lancer as subordinates?"
The giant Servant burst out laughing, dismissing his Master's questioning with a chuckle, without the slightest hint of guilt.
"Well, doesn't someone say that one must be brave enough to try everything?"
"So because one must be brave enough to try everything, you exposed your true name!?"
Furious beyond measure, tears welled in Webber's eyes as he thumped Rider's proudly upright body with his two powerless fists. Watching this impossible scene unfold, Irisviel felt an indescribable sense of awkwardness.
As for Sakutsuki...
Well, he was holding up a camcorder and laughing sneakily without the slightest shame.
This inexplicably relaxed atmosphere—
"Is that so? So it was you..."
—froze once more beneath a hateful voice that seemed to rise from the depths of hell.
"I was wondering what gave you the nerve to steal my Holy Relic... So you intended to participate in the Holy Grail War yourself, Mr. Webber Velvet."
Yes.
Webber thought.
He should have realized it sooner.
That man held a position as an instructor at the Clock Tower. Even if Iskandar's cloak had been stolen, he could still obtain another Heroic Spirit's Holy Relic. In that case, the man would naturally become Webber's enemy and come to Fuyuki City to appear before him.
One of the twelve Lords of the Mage's Association Clock Tower, the Lord of Mineralogy, Kishua's Lord—Kenneth El-Melloi Archibald.
Lancer's current Master.
That stern, pale face unique to an orthodox mage, along with that gaze of accusation and pity—once Webber remembered that arrogant instructor, a tangled mix of resentment and fear wrapped around him.
"What a pity. It truly is a pity. I had hoped that my dear student could live happily. Webber, an ordinary talent like you could have lived an ordinary, peaceful life as an ordinary person."
The voice was distorted by illusion, making it impossible to tell where it came from. Yet Webber once again remembered the nausea he had experienced so many times before, as though he were still standing in the classroom, receiving the contempt and ridicule of his classmates, teachers, and everyone else.
Webber desperately wanted to fire back with a clever retort. He had already beaten him to the punch and successfully made the Heroic Spirit Iskandar his Servant. Was that not a satisfying revenge for all the humiliation he had endured at the Clock Tower?
That was right. They were no longer teacher and student. Now, that man was a true and proper enemy. Webber could hate him as much as he wanted, and could even openly take his life.
But—the same was true for his opponent.
"What am I to do with you, Mr. Webber? I shall give you a special extracurricular lesson. I will thoroughly teach you the true meaning of mages slaughtering one another—the terror and pain of it. You should feel honored."
The cold, deliberately gentle tone carried a mage's genuine killing intent, making the ignorant fledgling tremble in fear.
The meaning represented by a true mage was to see through death... Webber had once understood that principle only in words, but now he finally experienced it firsthand. The gaze that man projected from somewhere unknown was that terrifying and ruthless. Webber had never known that a mage's killing intent could be such a resolute declaration of death.
If this continued, this newborn calf would surely be crushed by that excessively resolute killing intent.
Yet a strong, warm arm wrapped around the boy's thin, trembling shoulders.
"Hey, mage, it seems you wish to replace this boy and become my Master, don't you?"
Rider addressed Lancer's Master, who was hiding somewhere unknown, with a sly yet pitying smile on his face.
"If that is truly the case, then it is laughable beyond measure. The person fit to be my Master must be a warrior capable of galloping across the battlefield alongside me. A coward like you, who does not even dare show yourself, is utterly unqualified!"
After a silent pause, the anger of the invisible man spread through the night air. Rider laughed loudly and raised his voice toward the empty sky. "Hey! There are others hiding in the darkness and watching, aren't there?
"The Heroic Spirits drawn here by such clear sounds of spear and sword surely cannot be limited to me alone!"
The red-haired giant struck his chest heavily, producing a deafening boom like a war drum, but his roar was even more impassioned:
"Now! Let all Heroic Spirits chosen by the Holy Grail gather here. If any coward still does not dare reveal themselves, they shall earn the contempt of Iskandar, the King of Conquerors!"
Tonight, this night, this moment, this place.
Good and evil did not matter. Schemes and calculations did not matter. Even the original reasons and order were cast aside.
The king who had once conquered the four corners of the world shouted, challenging the Heroic Spirits who had descended alongside him:
Did they still possess the breadth and courage of heroes!
Did they dare accept the King of Conquerors' invitation and stand before the iron hooves of Iskandar!
The blonde, blue-eyed Knight King held her sword, peerlessly beautiful.
The Knight of Fianna, with a tear mole at the corner of his eye, held his spear, his smile intoxicating.
The young man who had inherited the Guardian's power raised his eyes, flames burning in their depths.
They had already stood before the King of Conquerors.
The assassin in the shadows sneered, unaware that a black-armored knight stood behind him.
The Godly Child, radiant as the moon, stood high in the sky, her gaze cold and calm.
Not every Heroic Spirit burned with the bloodlust of battle. Like the progress of human civilization, there was not only courageous advancement, but also planning and sacrifice hidden beneath the light.
But apart from them, there truly was one Heroic Spirit who would not reject such a provocation.
Golden light slowly ignited, announcing his presence to everyone.
That light finally descended upon the top of a streetlamp more than ten meters above the ground, transforming into a tall figure clad in gleaming armor. At the sight of his dazzlingly beautiful face, the Masters could not help gasping, while Kiritsugu Emiya directly aimed his gun at him without concealing his vigilance.
"That person is..."
Though they had only caught a glimpse of him before, his presence was so powerful that there was no possibility of mistaking him.
The man standing leisurely atop the tall streetlamp was the mysterious Servant who had displayed overwhelming destructive power the previous night, crushing the Assassin who had infiltrated the Tohsaka Estate to death.
Through their Masters' abilities, Webber and the others quickly confirmed his identity—Archer.
"I did not expect two shameless fools to emerge in a single night, ignoring my existence and daring to call themselves kings."
The golden Heroic Spirit's first words came with an extremely displeased sneer. He looked down contemptuously upon the three Servants facing one another below. His arrogant attitude and tone resembled that of the King of Conquerors, yet were even colder and more merciless.
Rider apparently had not expected an opponent even more aggressive than himself to appear. He scratched his chin with a puzzled look.
Before you continue