How About You Find Another Savior? Chapter 43

"Absolutely not." Artoria's confusion lasted only an instant.

She truly had not formed a bond with the Knights of the Round Table that transcended life and death as the King of Conquerors had. But the Holy Sword entrusted to her hands was the very light of her kingship.

Watching the two converse, Iskandar could not help but laugh. He reached down, lifted Waver from the ground, and set him in the chariot beside him.

"But I only have one warhorse. Xi Jianxi and Saber, would you like to share a horse?"

Even on the eve of battle, the King of Conquerors did not forget to tease his companions and ease the tension.

"That won't be necessary." With a wave of his hand, Xi Jianxi gently floated into the air. "I have flight magecraft to assist me. I don't need a mount."

Artoria nodded firmly in agreement. Before the King of Conquerors' black steed, which had charged over, could even come to a stop, she deftly swung herself onto its back.

"What a fine horse, King of Conquerors," Artoria praised.

Iskandar smugly rubbed beneath his nose. "Heh heh, if things weren't like this, I'd be riding Bucephalus and fighting you myself."

The joke over, Iskandar drew the sword at his waist and raised it high.

"Our enemy is the invincible King of Heroes! He is the perfect opponent for us!" he shouted, commanding his countless troops. "But there is no need to fear! Men! We have the renowned King of Knights and a mighty warrior of this age fighting alongside us! Now, show the first Heroic Spirit our dominance!"

"OHHHHHHHHH—!!!"

The army waiting in formation answered its king's roar with a deafening cry.

Listening to that battle cry, Gilgamesh, standing alone, remained utterly unmoved. He merely gazed calmly at the magnificent army before him.

He smiled arrogantly and lifted his chin toward the distant ranks.

As if answering his attitude, Xi Jianxi forcefully swung his spear and shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow.

"I'll take the lead!"

Unlike the magecraft ordinary Magi used to float or lighten their bodies, this was genuine flight.

More agile than a hawk, swifter than a hummingbird.

The dozens of meters stretched open by the Reality Marble shrank in the blink of an eye, leaving only the span of a few breaths.

In response to such fearless courage, dozens, even hundreds, of treasury gates opened in the space behind Gilgamesh. Strange Noble Phantasms poured down like torrential rain, shooting toward Xi Jianxi.

But Xi Jianxi was even faster than usual today. He had already grasped the firing speed of those Noble Phantasms. As long as he could display speed beyond that, he could break through this inescapable net.

Like a nimble swallow, Xi Jianxi swung his spear aside the Noble Phantasms that were about to strike him. He weaved through the impenetrable rain of Noble Phantasms at unfathomable speed, his body swallowed by dust kicked up by the explosions.

"Hmph..."

Along with Gilgamesh's cold laugh, Xi Jianxi, completely unscathed, had already reached him. The Red Spear struck first, thrusting straight for the King of Heroes' throat.

Then, a sudden sense of danger made Xi Jianxi abruptly roll backward.

More Noble Phantasms suddenly accelerated as they poured down, leaving Xi Jianxi almost nowhere to stand within their range of attack.

Gilgamesh, who stood within the same blast zone, slowly rose from the ground and gradually flew into the sky, startling Xi Jianxi as well.

Unlike what he had seen during the bloody battle at the Miyuen River, Gilgamesh was not sitting aboard a flying Noble Phantasm made of gold and emeralds. He simply floated dozens of meters into the air.

That must have been another ability granted by some Noble Phantasm.

"Not bad. My time wasted in this era with that fool Kirei was not in vain." Though Gilgamesh's figure drifted away, his voice still fell clearly upon their ears. "If you wish to save the world, surpass this point and endure the greatest trial I shall bestow upon you!"

Close behind Xi Jianxi, Artoria and Iskandar drove their mounts into battle. They too were stunned by the sudden development. As they charged, they swung their weapons to knock aside the incoming Noble Phantasms, unable to spare the attention to look up at the sky.

Countless golden points of light spread across the azure curtain one after another. The sky within the Reality Marble stretched for thousands of miles; stars would never shine in broad daylight.

Those were Gilgamesh's treasury gates.

Continuing to count them had become meaningless. One glance was enough to tell that there were already hundreds, perhaps even thousands.

Such a number was the "trial" Gilgamesh spoke of.

Xi Jianxi frowned deeply. He knew Gilgamesh did not seem to be as careless as expected. Instead, he had brought out a measure of seriousness to "play" with them.

Though deeply puzzled by Gilgamesh's words, Xi Jianxi had no time to hesitate. On the battlefield, unnecessary thoughts would only drag him into a dead end.

Lowering his body, Xi Jianxi pushed his magic circuits to their limit.

It was impossible to say how long the King of Conquerors' army could hold out. That army that had conquered in every direction was now defending with all its strength against the Noble Phantasms falling like a torrential downpour.

"King of Knights! Be ready to unleash your Noble Phantasm at any moment. I'll keep Gilgamesh occupied!"

After loudly conveying the tactical plan, Xi Jianxi vanished from where he stood with a whoosh, leaving behind only a whirlwind that scattered the dust and smoke, exposing a patch of empty sand.

Curse

Behind Ryuudou Temple lay a crystal-clear pond. It was said that, in the past, a dragon god had dwelled there.

But that was a sight of the past.

What lay before Kiritsugu Emiya and Irisviel was a lake of tar mixed with red phosphorescence and black matter.

And at the center of the lake was something grotesque and nauseating, like a mountain of rotting flesh.

"That is..." Even Kiritsugu could not help but feel horrified at the sight.

Irisviel's heart suddenly felt as though it had been clutched tight. She frowned deeply and looked toward the circular opening in the sky.

Black matter was overflowing within the "hole," on the verge of pouring out.

"...The Holy Grail really has been corrupted."

Though she had already believed what Morgan and Xi Jianxi had said, some things could only truly crush all hope once seen with one's own eyes.

"We have to stop the Holy Grail from activating by force. If this continues... it will lead to a terrible disaster."

Irisviel hurriedly told her husband.

It was no longer a colorless wish-granting device meant to fulfill wishes. It was a specialized killing weapon that could emerge at any moment.

Though Irisviel could no longer resonate with the Holy Grail, she could still sense the utterly ominous magical energy.

"You came at just the right time, Kiritsugu Emiya." Kirei stood at the lake's edge with his back to them. "No one could be more fitting than you to witness the completion of my Holy Grail."

He wore a strange smile, his eyes filled with mockery for Kiritsugu.

Just as Xi Jianxi and Morgan had discussed in the castle last night, Kirei, who had not sunk into the Lost Will, had not only escaped through an unconventional method, but had also witnessed the dreams of others.

Before the illusion vanished, he had seen Kiritsugu Emiya's dream.

Abandoning things again and again.

A single phrase was enough to summarize Kiritsugu's life.

That man had given up much joy and happiness throughout his life. In Kirei's eyes, even the smallest fragments among them were worth protecting, worth devoting one's life to.

For Kirei, who could not find even a single such fragment, the meaning of Kiritsugu's life had long surpassed longing and hope.

Yet such a man had actually been crushed by the things he had abandoned, nearly having his heart worn away completely.

How utterly boring.

Kiritsugu Emiya's emptiness was merely something forced upon him after he embraced a wish beyond human power.

So Kirei no longer struggled with it. He knew what he should do.

He would understand and accept his nature by personally killing his wife.

If the Holy Grail truly contained All the World's Evil, then he would release that thing and ask why it had chosen him as its Master.

As for how many wails and cries the completed Holy Grail would bring, Kirei did not care. He would relish them.

"Stop the Holy Grail right now, Kirei!" Kiritsugu raised the rifle in his hands, aiming at the man with decisive killing intent.

Kirei did not care in the slightest. "With all the Servants held back by Archer, you are no match for me."

The moment he finished speaking, Kiritsugu pulled the trigger.

But every bullet was blocked.

The ones emerging from the darkness were Assassins moving in bizarre ways.

They were all wrapped in strange colors, their bodies writhing in horrifying postures as if something controlled them.

"Did you make your Servant consume that stuff?" Irisviel covered her mouth and cried out.

The aura emanating from the Assassins was nearly identical to the lake water mixed with dense black magical energy.

"These fellows are scattered individually and far too weak, so they needed something to reinforce them." Kirei raised his empty left hand. "But making Assassin willingly drink this stuff without being devoured by it used up all my Command Spells."

Even so, the Assassins could no longer betray Kirei.

Now that their independent consciousness had been stripped away, they had become Kirei's most effective killing machines.

"Iri, get back... Leave this to me." Cold sweat ran down Kiritsugu's face.

Though Maiya was also nearby, secretly preparing to snipe.

With Assassin protecting him, there was no way to kill Kirei by conventional means.

"Kiritsugu, I—"

Just as Irisviel was about to say that she would fight alongside her husband, a cold whistle of something cutting through the air came from behind them.

Kiritsugu, unable to react in time, turned in terror to pull Iri away. But the black dagger was knocked aside by a sudden burst of light just before it struck.

"Without a Servant, you cannot stop him."

A cool, noble voice sounded as Morgan slowly descended beside the Emiya couple.

"Lady Morgan!" Irisviel was immediately overjoyed.

Logically, Morgan should have been among the Servants all blocked over there. But judging by what had just happened, Xi Jianxi had most likely used a Command Spell amid the fierce battle to send Morgan here.

"Oh, I did not expect Gilgamesh to let you through." Kirei was not flustered in the slightest. "But if you still regard Assassin as it was before, you will be in trouble, witch absent from human history."

His form of address made Morgan frown. Then...

Boom—

A tremendous roar came from the lake.

The opening in the sky began to spill black-red "filth."

It was the manifested magical energy of the corrupted Holy Grail. At its current scale, it could not yet grant wishes, but it was already enough to devour anything tainted by it.

At that moment, Kirei casually waved his hand. The Assassins lying in wait all around emerged with twisted roars, charging toward the three who were surrounded.

"Maintain your defense. I will deal with the Servants."

With a wave of Morgan's hand, defensive and enhancement magecraft was cast upon the two of them.

Normally, Morgan only needed to resolve matters here smoothly and ensure her own safety.

Yet she still gave these two her protection as though by reflex.

She truly could not cast aside the naivety she had been born with.

Morgan sighed inwardly, then swung the Demon Spear sharply and slew the first Assassin to approach.

The slain Assassin fell to the ground, but did not disappear. Its body gradually collapsed into a puddle of thick black mud that slowly flowed toward them.

"Be careful! That black mud can easily corrupt a Servant's spiritual core. Even touching a little of it will be troublesome!" Irisviel hurriedly warned Morgan.

Morgan lightly stamped her foot. The ground beneath the three of them gradually rose, becoming an elevated earthen platform.

"Then let us slightly alter the difference in numbers between friend and foe." She raised her hand, crushed the light in her palm, and sent it flying in every direction before it exploded.

When the blinding light faded, five identical copies of Morgan floated in the air.

Seeing this, Kirei could not help but take out his spare Black Keys and prepare to meet them.

Just a little more time—

Joining Forces to Counterattack

Within the vast, boundless desert, Xi Jianxi was nowhere to be seen.

Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow slightly as he noticed the change. Then he slowly lifted his gaze toward the sky at an angle above him.

Several times higher than Gilgamesh's own altitude, Xi Jianxi was slowly adjusting his posture, preparing to dive.

Using gravity's acceleration to supplement his own speed, he intended to charge straight at Gilgamesh even faster and behead him.

There was not a single cloud in the sky within the King of Conquerors' Reality Marble.