Crashing the Party / Gaining a Slight Upper Hand (Happy National Day~)

"Yes, I'm here."

"That's good..."

Wang Xiaoming's tone, which sounded as if he had breathed a sigh of relief, made Shirou a little puzzled. However, before he could think about it further, he heard Wang Xiaoming continue, "Once we get there, try not to get involved in the battle unless necessary. Also, the strength of those two Servant over there should not be underestimated."

"Yes, I understand."

Shirou nodded in agreement. Then, as if he had just thought of something, he turned to Wang Xiaoming on the other end of the phone and asked:

"Should we contact the Tohsaka Family?"

After all, as the managers of the Fuyuki City lines, the Tohsaka Family should be present when such a situation arises. However, since the head of the family Tohsaka Tokiomi, is away on vacation, Tohsaka Rin, as the acting head of the family, naturally has to fulfill this responsibility in place of her father.

However, since Dad mentioned the situation, there might be some tricky circumstances, so it's more reliable for both sides to act together.

"Little Rin?"

Shirou could clearly sense that Wang Xiaoming's voice had suddenly become somewhat strange. "There's no need to contact Little Rin anymore; she's probably already arrived at the battlefield before you."

"Okay, I understand."

Although he didn't quite understand the meaning behind Wang Xiaoming's words, Shirou could guess that what happened over there was probably quite related to Tohsaka Rin.

"--We'll know once we get there."

With that thought in mind, Shirou gave Mordred and Ruler a "no problem" look before running towards the battlefield.

"Are you alright?"

Seeing Wang Xiaoming's conflicted expression after hanging up the phone, Cassandra asked him a question.

"If the other Servant's identity is truly as you say, then the situation is probably beyond the capabilities of just one or two Servant to change."

That being said—

After listening to Cassandra's question, Wang Xiaoming, having composed himself, suddenly laughed:

"But don't underestimate my little devil!"

Chapter 402. Unauthorized Intervention

"Although it's been almost a thousand years, your personality is still as repulsive as ever."

After a brief "probing" exercise, Enkidu was still standing unharmed on the ground, spoke first on the battlefield, which had fallen into a brief silence.

"Don't joke around. The person saying that should be me, right?"

The girl in the clouds seemed to have opened up after hearing that sentence.

"I never expected that my whim to stroll through the courtyard would lead me to such a piece of junk. Honestly, why would anyone be so foolish as to sign a contract with someone like you? It's ruined my whole good mood."

The girl's complaints were abruptly cut short by the weapon that suddenly attacked her.

"I'm sorry, your familiar style made it hard for me to control my impulse."

"I knew I was being too optimistic, hoping to learn from you, you worthless doll. Honestly, you copied Shamhat's appearance but didn't inherit a single one of her good qualities... You're absolutely terrible."

Upon hearing Enkidu's insincere voice, the girl gave a forced, insincere smile.

"Since that's the case, then this goddess will generously help you out. You tattered doll, just obediently let me crush you into pieces here and let you dry up and rot away~"

However, the girl's murderous words had no effect on Enkidu whatsoever.

"Honestly, you're becoming more and more like an evil god. But then again, humanity has already established a new [god (technology)], so it's only natural that you, having lost your faith, would be classified as an [evil god]. Therefore..."

Enkidu's Issei voice seemed to be delivering a "judgment" on the girl's "crime"—

"As a remnant abandoned by the [Age of Gods], I think you'd better disappear as soon as possible."

The moment the voice faded, the ground beneath Enkidu's feet... seemed to come alive, beginning to gather intense magical power.

Immediately afterwards, like spring buds breaking through the soil, all sorts of weapons, such as guns, swords, and bows, emerged from the ground. Then, after a breath's time, thousands of sharp blades detached from the ground and rushed towards the girl in the sky.

"I was originally planning to play with you a little longer... but now it seems better to just crush you into red clay and throw you into the Mion River to be washed away~"

As she spoke, the girl smiled and gently waved her hand. A massive magical arrow, appearing behind her with an aura of annihilation, hurtled towards the dense array of weapons below.

The next second, the impact of the weapon colliding with the arrow resounded across the stage between the earth and the sky!

On the other hand, Shirou, having heard the news, also rushed to the scene, but the scene before him... no, even Ruler, who had experienced several Holy Grail War, instinctively held his breath at the shocking sight.

At the edge of the forest in the eastern suburbs, dazzling beams of light collided repeatedly between the sky and the ground.

A force powerful enough to bring an onlooker's life to an abrupt halt erupted continuously from two points, above and below, colliding, twisting, rubbing, and bending against each other...

The explosions caused by the collisions and friction further squeezed the living space of other beams, while the twisted and bent beams struck the ground and the sky respectively, leaving behind scorched and overturned soil like meteorite craters and a vast empty night sky where clouds were shattered to almost nothingness.

Shirou looked up at the sky, only to find that with his eyesight, he could only spot a stream of light radiating powerful magic amidst the intersecting beams of light.

"Ruler, can you tell me about those two Servant currently on the battlefield?"

Ruler, who possesses the ability to "True Name Discernment," can learn a Servant's true name, class, and abilities upon encountering Servant. However, whether or not to share this information with other Master is up to Ruler's own judgment.

Therefore, having prepared for both possibilities, Shirou sought help from Ruler while simultaneously casting [Reinforcement Magecraft] on his eyes.

As for Ruler, considering his alliance with Shirou's side and the possibility of needing Saber's power to stop these two "reckless" individuals, he didn't bother to deliberately hide anything.

"The two Servant over there are Archer and Lancer..."

However, before he could finish speaking, Ruler suddenly noticed that Shirou was standing next to him, had suddenly froze.

"What's wrong?"

Instead of immediately responding to Ruler's question, Shirou, having used his enhanced vision to clearly see Archer's face, was now filled with a constant stream of question marks.

I understand the logic, but can you tell me... why does that Archer look exactly like Tohsaka Rin?!

"Pseudo-Servant... Ishtar...?"

After hearing Ruler's explanation, Shirou finally understood the meaning behind his father's meaningful voice.

What do you mean by arriving on the battlefield in one step... Nonsense, isn't this the battle she started, which means she was the first to arrive!

You've really gone to such lengths to betray your son, Dad!

Never mind, now is not the time to talk about that...

Forcibly suppressing the strong urge to make sarcastic remarks Shirou looked up again at the figure that was constantly weaving through the clouds.

If this situation is allowed to continue, it may become a troublesome incident that cannot be covered up by the excuse of "gas explosion".

Looking at this scene that resembles a meteorite shower, one wonders what the Tohsaka Family Head will think when he returns and sees that pile of bills.

But for now... let's get those two to stop fighting first.

"Saber..."

Shirou turned his gaze to his Servant.

"Don't underestimate me, Master."

After noticing the worry in Shirou's eyes, Mordred showed a displeased expression.

It's important to understand that in Mordred's eyes, ranking strength is quite simple—

My father comes first, myself second, and as for everything else...

Those are all worthless.

Gods?

So what!

Ever since Mordred learned from Ruler that her father intended to accept her, a wicked desire to cause trouble had been ignited within her.

She was determined to achieve something that would make her father proud, and these two seemed to be the perfect "sacrifice."

"Leave it to me!"

Having made his promise, Mordred took the silver greatsword that was slung over his shoulder into his hand.

"Clarent--"

As the incantation began, crimson magical lightning crackled around Mordred, and the silver blade in her hand transformed into crimson flames...

The next second--

A crimson pillar of light, piercing the heavens and earth, roared as it rushed toward the center of the battlefield, turning everything in its path to dust the instant it touched the pillar.

Even so, this seemingly destructive roar still couldn't drown out the girl's soaring voice—

"--Blood Arthur (Clarent Blood Arthur)!!!"

Chapter 403. A Slight Advantage (Happy National Day~)

On the outskirts of Fuyuki City--

God and weapons

Destruction and creation

The impact generated by the contact between the two completely different forces flattened the space itself and its surroundings.

Enormous energies clashed and twisted within the gap created by their combined attacks...

However, for the two people at the center of the battlefield, even though they were in such a vortex of power, neither of them showed any sign of seriousness.

--It's not that they feel at ease.

Whether it was Enkidu or Ishtar, as the "instigators," they were well aware that whoever dared to be the slightest bit negligent would inevitably meet a tragic end.

But so what?

As gods and heroes appearing in "Sumerian mythology," the long-standing feud between the two sides is inscribed in great detail on the unearthed stone tablets.

That's why, the moment they realized each other's presence, they both instinctively abandoned any playful thoughts.

The Holy Grail, the all-powerful wish-granting machine?

Rather than using such a concoction to deceive the ignorant, the two preferred to see the Holy Grail War as an opportunity, a chance to settle the "grudges" that had entangled them for nearly a thousand years.

That's why there's no room for forgiveness or politeness between them. They only want to—

Seriously kill the other person!

However, their fight was just the kind that would drag everyone around into it.

Then, the magic that had canceled each other out during the battle dissipated around the two of them. Although it dissipated, it still retained a power strong enough to create a tornado nearby.

Is that all?

Taking advantage of a lull in the attacks, Enkidu, still standing on the ground, looked up at Ishtar in the clouds with a calm expression.

"Now that you lack the support of gods and believers, is this all the power you have?"

However, the goddess sitting atop the clouds scoffed at Enkidu's mockery.

"Are you kidding me? I wouldn't even need to get serious to crush a piece of scrap metal like you into dust, would I?"

"Getting serious?"

After hearing Ishtar's words, Enkidu raised an eyebrow slightly. "You mean by 'getting serious' you mean going to the gods in heaven to curse me?"

"..."

Enkidu's expression remained calm as he watched Ishtar's face gradually darken.

"To be honest, I'm still a little curious. In this era where the gods no longer exist, why do you, as a remnant of [dead matter], still have the confidence to say such things?"

After a brief silence, Ishtar finally spoke.

"You're still as annoying as ever, you piece of junk."

Instead of getting angry, he smiled.