The Pot of This World

Weber, Weber, what on earth were you thinking? Why did you join such a ridiculous ritual...? Was a mythological battle on this level really something a nobody like you could meddle in?

However, aside from Iskandar, no one on the battlefield had any interest in the thoughts and feelings of a nobody like him.

"It's all right, little Master. As long as I'm here, you won't be hurt."

Noticing Weber's unease, Iskandar gently patted his head with his broad palm, then offered a warm smile as he comforted him.

Rider...

Feeling the warmth conveyed by that large hand, Weber felt the unease in his heart lessen considerably. Even the red-haired Rider before him did not seem as irritating as before. He then edged a little closer to Rider.

"Then..."

Having comforted his little Master, Iskandar abruptly changed the subject. His gaze swept across the surroundings, and he raised an arm, using mana to amplify his voice.

"Heroic Spirits gathered here tonight, heroes and champions from different ages, you have all now revealed yourselves! From this moment onward, any rats still hiding in the shadows, any cowards who dare not show themselves, will surely earn the contempt of Iskandar, King of Conquerors!!"

Deliberately amplified, Iskandar's deep and resonant voice echoed continuously through Fuyuki City's docks. It swiftly reached everyone present and carried farther and farther without weakening in the slightest.

"Oh? Is this fellow trying to gather everyone here?"

A smile appeared on Scáthach's face as she watched Iskandar's actions.

"Rider, are you..."

Artoria was slightly stunned. From Iskandar's words, were there others hiding around this battlefield?

"Hahaha, isn't that obvious, Saber?"

"Your battle with Lancer just now was truly magnificent. That exquisite skill and the mana spilling out during the fight would make anyone stop and watch, even from a great distance. That is why I, along with this... Lancer?"

Iskandar looked uncertainly at Scáthach beside him. Only then did he realize that there appeared to be two Lancers this time. Scáthach, however, could not be bothered to respond.

"In short, I believe that any true hero, upon sensing such astonishing power, would be unable to remain calm! They would surely come here to observe. And if they can truly be called heroes, then they will undoubtedly reveal themselves!!"

Iskandar nodded at Artoria before continuing to shout. His voice grew louder once more and soon echoed throughout the entire harbor.

At that moment, a suited man in the Tohsaka Family was internally screaming that things had gone terribly wrong, his expression thrown into panic.

"This is bad..."

Tokiomi Tohsaka was panicking badly, and his face grew increasingly unpleasant.

"It certainly is."

Kirei Kotomine nodded beside him.

They had not expected this Holy Grail War to include a hero as straightforward as Iskandar, King of Conquerors. Not only had he openly revealed his True Name, he was even using it to gather all the Servants in one area.

If their Servant had merely been an Assassin with no sense of honor, that would have been fine. But this time, it was not.

Tokiomi Tohsaka knew full well the temperament of the ancestor he had summoned. He could also foresee just how appealing this tactic would be to him, which was why he had inwardly thought things were bad.

And just as he had expected, while Tokiomi Tohsaka and Kirei Kotomine were worrying about the situation, that ominous premonition swiftly came true...

"Hmph!"

A low snort sounded, followed by the gradual emergence of golden light. Then, a figure clad in golden armor appeared atop a streetlamp near the harbor.

—Bang!!

A shattering sound rang out beside them.

As though expressing his dissatisfaction, the golden Heroic Spirit stomped down hard, crushing the lamp beneath his feet into fragments.

A golden Heroic Spirit who seemed to have a grudge against streetlamps had appeared!!

"I never imagined that three mongrels daring to call themselves kings would emerge in a single night."

He looked down on the four below him—Weber did not count in his eyes—and spoke with utter disdain and a cold voice, showing no regard whatsoever for these foremost heroes of history and myth.

Was this the golden Archer who had effortlessly eliminated Assassin at the Tohsaka Residence?

At the sight of the golden Heroic Spirit, those who had prepared intelligence beforehand all turned their gazes toward this terrifying opponent, inwardly marveling.

He truly is extraordinarily powerful!!

Another powerful opponent, no weaker than—perhaps even stronger than—the four Heroic Spirits present...

After only a single glance, the four present had already made a rough estimate of the golden Heroic Spirit's strength.

"Even if you say that..."

Faced with the golden Heroic Spirit's mockery, Iskandar, King of Conquerors, did not become angry. Instead, he stroked his beard thoughtfully before saying to him,

"My name is Iskandar, King of Conquerors. The other three are likewise famous heroes from mythology, and all have already given their names. Since you too are a king, would you be willing to state your name?"

"Hm?"

It was merely an ordinary question and probe, yet Iskandar's words sounded unbearably grating to the golden Heroic Spirit, making him furrow his brow.

The next moment, as though deeply offended, he crushed the streetlamp beneath his feet completely.

—Bang, bang, bang!!

A string of explosions rang out alongside his enraged voice.

"You have been granted the honor of beholding my radiance, yet you do not know my True Name. Such arrogance and blindness are crimes deserving ten thousand deaths!!"

As his furious voice fell, the golden king swept his hand sharply through the air.

Countless golden ripples then spread across the night sky, appearing one after another. Golden gates of light opened throughout the darkness, and innumerable golden Noble Phantasms emerged from them, all aimed directly at Iskandar below.

"Those are all Noble Phantasms?!"

The sight of Noble Phantasms continuously emerging from those golden gates was so unreasonable that the Heroic Spirits present could not help but feel their hearts tighten.

Compared with Artoria's astonishment and Iskandar's confusion, Scáthach and Fionn mac Cumhaill, standing nearby, both had their eyes light up at the sight of the spread of golden gates, as though they had thought of something.

Fionn bit his finger as he began considering that possible answer.

"Are we fighting already? What an unreasonable fellow..."

Facing so many Noble Phantasms, Iskandar on the ground naturally did not dare relax in the slightest. Both hands tightly gripped the reins of the Gordius Wheel, and his expression immediately turned serious as he prepared to clash head-on at any moment.

"Ah... ah, Rider... Are those really all Noble Phantasms?"

Unlike Iskandar, who could still spare the attention to think while dozens of Noble Phantasms were locked onto him, Weber, curled up inside the Gordius Wheel, was completely unable to hold it together.

In his short life, he had never dreamed that one day he would witness so many treasures from the Age of Gods, much less have them all targeting him!!

Unlike Iskandar, Weber, as an outstanding student, could even identify the True Names and functions of those Noble Phantasms from memory. Precisely because of that, he was panicking badly, able only to clutch Rider and tremble.

Seeing this, Fionn could not help but frown, and his grip on the Double-Headed Spear quietly tightened.

He did not care about Rider's safety, but Weber was, after all, his Master's student.

Although his Master constantly complained about those two unfilial disciples, Fionn could tell that Kenneth held no murderous intent toward Rovey and Weber. It was more reproach and discipline than anything else.

This greatly changed his impression of his Master.

Talented and arrogant, with quite a few minor flaws in his personality, yet without any grave faults. He was an entirely normal person. No, among Magi, such character could even be considered outstanding.

When he had first met him, Fionn had vaguely sensed some reflection of himself in Kenneth...

So he knew that if his Master were here, he would never watch his own student be killed. Rider could be ignored, but Weber's life had to be preserved!!

Although, if the golden Heroic Spirit above truly was that king, it would be difficult for him to defeat him as a Lancer rather than in his strongest class, certain accomplishments from his life gave him a favorable compatibility against that king. With the sea supporting him as well, victory was not impossible.

Thinking this, Fionn had already secretly prepared himself for battle.

Scáthach, who had likewise noticed this, smiled faintly and turned her attention toward Artoria, whom she had been eager to fight since daytime.

If it truly became a melee, she needed to choose a worthy opponent. This Saber happened to be quite suitable.

"Yes, my little Master."

Iskandar gave Weber an affirmative answer.

Everything above them was a Noble Phantasm, and they all seemed to be of considerable rank.

"Then... then what are we supposed to do?!"

Faced with overwhelming mana and the sharp menace of those Noble Phantasms, Weber clung tightly to Iskandar's arm, completely at a loss.

"Hey, hey, even if they are all Noble Phantasms, isn't that reaction a little too disgraceful? My little Master."

Rider shook his head helplessly at Weber's behavior.

"Then... no one else should be showing up now..."

Before he could finish his sentence—

"Arrrrr-rrrrr!!!!"

A piercing roar filled with madness suddenly rang out.

Then, a black Heroic Spirit dove down from high above, and a violent aura erupted!!

Scapegoat of This World

"Is that the Servant summoned by Tokiomi Tohsaka?"

In the harbor district, Matou Kariya had appeared openly with Berserker after receiving Matou Zouken's approval.

As he looked at the golden Heroic Spirit standing on the streetlamp, he had more or less found his answer.

Rider belonged to that handsome black-haired young man, Saber belonged to Einzbern, and Scáthach belonged to Rovey. Judging from the intelligence, Lancer was probably not his either. That meant the only possible Servant of Tokiomi Tohsaka was the golden Heroic Spirit above—Archer?!

Having figured out the sequence of events, Matou Kariya no longer hesitated. He directly ordered the black Heroic Spirit under his command—Berserker—to charge into the battlefield.

"Arrrr..."

Having received Matou Kariya's command, the black knight silently glanced at him.

Matou Zouken had originally intended to apply a double madness-enhancing spell to increase Lancelot's destructive power. However, considering Matou Kariya's frail constitution, controlling a Berserker subjected to double madness enhancement was nothing but wishful thinking.

Though he did not care about this unfilial descendant's life, he had to admit that Matou Kariya still had some use in this Holy Grail War.

He could die, but he could not die too early. Besides, if the boy's incompetence caused the doubly enhanced Lancelot to lose control and ruin his plans and arrangements, the loss would outweigh the gain.

Therefore, while this Lancelot was a Berserker whose sanity naturally deteriorated, he was not completely incapable of communication.

It was just that...

"What is going on?"

Matou Kariya turned back in silence and discovered that Berserker had not entered battle as ordered. Instead, he stood there blankly, staring at Artoria on the battlefield before immediately becoming entangled with her without hesitation, defying the command he had been given.

This scene left Matou Kariya confused.

"..."

Matou Zouken, however, saw much more in it.

"Lancelot and King Arthur... So this is what happens when they meet..."

"However, King Arthur's capabilities have already been mostly exposed. At a time like this, we should be probing that Archer whose depth we do not know."

He did not panic. Instead, he pondered many things.

"Then use a Command Seal. Using them all up early can also disguise Berserker's withdrawal from the war."

Matou Zouken instructed Matou Kariya through his familiar.

"Control Berserker and have him attack Tokiomi Tohsaka's Servant directly. Test the other side's strength. That is what you wanted to do anyway, isn't it?"

"Old Worm..."

Hearing the voice by his ear, Matou Kariya clenched his fist, feeling thoroughly displeased.

But he had to admit that what Old Worm said was indeed what he wanted to do. So he nodded silently and turned his gaze back to the battlefield.

"By the Command Seal, I order you: Berserker, ignore Saber and attack Archer directly."

"Hm? What exactly is wrong with this black knight?!"

Artoria, chosen by Berserker and forcibly dragged into battle, was alarmed. She swung her sword, wreathed in azure gale-force winds, repeatedly at the black shadow before her, trying to halt his assault.

Yet although he was a mad warrior who had lost his reason, his exceptional martial skill seemed engraved into his body itself. Even facing her blade, he could evade and counterattack through instinctive reactions alone.