The Beast Appears

Command Spells were things magi used to better supply Heroic Spirits with magical energy and control them. Their purpose was to improve their chances of claiming the Holy Grail and, upon winning, to ensure they could kill the Heroic Spirit who also wanted the chance to make a wish.

After all, the Holy Grail could grant only one wish, but there were two people who wanted to make one.

What could they do?

But Command Spells were no cure-all. If a Heroic Spirit had a sufficiently strong will and powerful enough resistance to magical energy, they simply couldn't control that Heroic Spirit's actions. And that was even more true of a Heroic Spirit like Gilgamesh, who had an immense stockpile of Noble Phantasms.

But what if the person wielding this thing called a Command Spell was a god? Although she wasn't a complete deity, with the Command Spell system of this Holy Grail War and her immense magical energy, controlling Gilgamesh, who was now a limited Servant, was far from impossible.

As the goddess Ishtar, she only needed to make use of that connection. The proof was that after she activated the Command Spell, the mark on her hand hadn't disappeared.

"Damn you... you despicable..."

Golden lightning crackled uncontrollably across Gilgamesh's body. The gates to his treasury, which had been flung open, slammed shut. But it wasn't the magical energy of the Command Spell controlling him. It was the power of a god.

That wasn't what enraged him, though. Tokiomi Tohsaka was no ally of his, and he had even interrupted Gilgamesh's reunion with his friend. But since Tokiomi had treated him with the courtesy due a king, Gilgamesh could spare his life. He would merely lose his chance to serve him and watch him fulfill his long-held wish.

But no matter what, punishing his subjects was a king's responsibility, not something to be interfered with by some presumptuous goddess!

And certainly not in this manner, forcing a little girl to betray and attack her own father!

"Ishtar! You've made me angry!"

Gilgamesh clenched his fists and glared furiously at Ishtar. But now, with his Noble Phantasms sealed and the Star of Omniscience and Omnipotence shut down by his own hand, he had almost no chance of turning things around.

Unless Enkidu noticed what was happening, then—

"Oh, please. I'd been ready for this ever since that man got the snake's shed skin, Gilgamesh. But you were so arrogant you never even considered what I might do. Not for a moment..."

Covering her mouth, Ishtar smiled like a fox, her face brimming with satisfaction. Yet her expression was also full of resentment and displeasure, as though forgetting her were the greatest crime in the world, one deserving of the death penalty.

"But what a rare sight, seeing you look so pathetic. Come on, let me see the delightful expression you'll make when you watch your friend die before your eyes again!"

Ishtar, the goddess, had now completely suppressed the will of the girl named Rin Tohsaka. The girl's soul was still too young to resist a goddess.

Aside from being unable to wield the full power of the Lady of Venus, it was practically Ishtar from the Age of Gods herself who had descended.

Even the structure of the girl's body was being altered without her realizing it, becoming better suited to powerful magical energy and Magecraft, as well as a god's Spirit Core.

Gilgamesh realized what was happening, but there was nothing he could do. Seeing that, Ishtar once again gave his furious face a scornful smile.

"Oh, right. This girl is your subject's daughter, isn't she? How useless. In the words of this country, she's about to become my human sacrifice. Well, Gilgamesh? What's it like being a king who can't even protect his subject's child? Admit it. You're nothing but a useless mongrel!"

Gilgamesh wanted to curse Ishtar, but just then Gugalanna's hoof came crashing down. Even he had to admit that the loathsome goddess had chosen an excellent moment!

On the battlefield, Enkidu gazed gravely at Gugalanna's enormous hoof, as massive as a mountain, about to come crashing down. It was the Bull of Heaven, herald of the storm. Enkidu stood bathed in the tempest, his white robes whipping in the wind.

If Gilgamesh were here, Enkidu could sacrifice his Spirit Origin and draw on Li Ke's magical energy and the power of the earth to transform into the Chains of Heaven, binding Gugalanna and giving Gilgamesh the chance to destroy the Bull of Heaven with Ea!

But Gilgamesh had probably already fallen into Ishtar's trap. He couldn't spare a thought for anything happening here. And the worst part was—

"What's wrong? If you can't satisfy me, I'm not letting you interfere."

Facing the woman before him as she brandished her spear, Enkidu couldn't understand what she was thinking.

"We should be helping our Master right now! What are you doing, Scathach?"

"I'm only indulging his wishes... My descent did affect his personality a little, making him more inclined to fight, but it hasn't changed his true nature. So, Enkidu, you were summoned and immediately lost yourself in the joy of reuniting with an old friend. How could you possibly know what our Master really wants?"

Scathach paid no heed to Gugalanna's hoof overhead. She was immortal, and if she could, she would have helped stop it. But without Li Ke's willingness to assist, it was absolutely impossible.

So her highest priority now was to do what she and her student wanted.

Enkidu had no other choice. He launched an attack. Countless golden points of light appeared across the earth. Since he couldn't persuade Scathach, he would have to use force to hold back both her and the Bull of Heaven!

"You think you can unleash your Noble Phantasm? How naive!"

Scathach charged straight at him, but the spear she hurled flew even faster. Enkidu clearly saw the frenzied power of death clinging to its crimson shaft. It was his absolute bane—if it touched him, he would die instantly!

"Tch!"

The green-haired beauty retreated swiftly. Countless golden chains shot from the golden ripples beneath her, stabbing toward Scathach. But Scathach reached Enkidu before the chains could even appear, thrusting her spear toward his chest!

Under Enkidu's control, the golden chains swiftly sprang up between him and Scathach's spearhead, breaking the deadly strike. But the blow still slammed hard into his chest. Then Scathach picked up the spear she had thrown, which had landed on the earth, and stabbed it toward Enkidu's throat!

Enkidu had no choice but to direct the flowers on the ground to unleash magical attacks at Scathach's hand and spearhead. Dozens of beams of light swept toward her from all sides, buying him precious time.

At that moment, Scathach swiftly twisted her body, dodging the golden beams streaking through the air. Some even grazed between her full thighs and across the ample cleavage of her breasts.

Yet the immense movement did nothing to hinder the spears in her hands. With a single midair spin, both spears slipped past Enkidu's attacks and defenses like venomous snakes, stabbing once more toward his heart and throat!

Damn it! He couldn't even breathe!

Enkidu had no choice but to summon countless chains from the earth to forcibly block the strike. By now, he was completely caught in Scathach's rhythm. Even if he poured all his magical energy into boosting his Agility, she could still keep up with ease!

So he stopped relying on speed and fighting at high velocity. Instead, he swiftly wrapped countless chains around his hands and seized the spear thrust at him by the Lady of the Land of Shadows!

"Oh, you figured it out?"

Scathach smiled faintly. To ensure she could enjoy the thrill of battle, she had always adjusted her abilities to match her opponent's level. Enkidu had made the right choice: as a limited Servant, he should bolster his endurance and magical energy to seek out her openings and adapt to her changes, rather than engage her in a high-speed contest.

"But will you have enough time?"

As the two fought, Gugalanna's hoof had already broken through the clouds and descended to less than a thousand meters above them. In under three seconds, it would crush them!

With Scathach holding him back, Enkidu had no way to unleash his Noble Phantasm!

Looking at the enormous hoof in the sky, Scathach couldn't help thinking of the student she had once been most proud of.

"Come to think of it, Cú Chulainn met his end because of a bull, didn't he? I wonder what will happen to a student who harbors the same desire for me, the same longing for battle?"

She was curious. And because it was what Li Ke wanted, she didn't intervene.

The air compressed, and no one in Fuyuki City could speak. They couldn't understand why a bull had appeared in the sky, nor why its hoof was as big as a mountain.

But everyone knew they weren't going to survive.

Yet at this moment, whether they were helpless children, the elderly, or adults, none of them could make a sound. Even with their mouths wide open, no noise came out.

It was the silence before death.

Meanwhile, inside the Black Mud, countless malice was furiously corroding Li Ke, trying to seize his body and awaken his demonic power.

Rage at Scathach for refusing to help him, rage at Enkidu for being useless, rage at his own weakness...

Lust for Scathach's every move, for the adorable Rin Tohsaka and her still-alluring mother...

Sloth, his unwillingness to train, and the anger it stirred up...

Countless desires and negative emotions mingled together. Li Ke also heard countless people judging, scolding, resenting, and reproaching him. It was as if the entire world were accusing him, convinced that he was the source of all evil.

But there was one thing Li Ke couldn't understand.

"This pathetic excuse for evil is nothing but self-pity and something like bullying, and you dare call yourselves All the World's Evils?!"

The evil of this world had succeeded in stirring up all sorts of desires and negative emotions in Li Ke.

But it had also failed.

"And everyone resents and blames me? That's wonderful! It means they can do nothing to me. All they can do is envy me, resent me, and fear me. And if everyone is against me, that means—"

In the darkness, Li Ke smiled.

"I can do whatever I want, without holding back!"

Beneath his surging desires, the power of All the World's Evils was completely absorbed by the evil side of Li Ke. Yet it couldn't affect his judgment in the slightest.

Because in Li Ke's sense of self, whether he was doing evil or being kind, both were things he himself wanted to do. Other people's opinions and thoughts were utterly meaningless!

The Beast within human nature began to manifest!

The power of All the World's Evils, the fear of those around him, and the magical energy and life force of the air and the planet poured into his body without end. The Beasts who held the authorities of "sin" also entered his body at his call—or, to put it more bluntly, when he kidnapped them. Their authorities naturally became Li Ke's as well!

The first to activate was the Principle of Comparison, representing envy!

People constantly compared themselves with others. Such comparisons could inspire them to strive harder, but they could also breed deep envy and arrogance. Therefore, once comparison took hold, Li Ke, as a Beast, could become absolutely stronger than his opponent!

So, gazing at Gugalanna's hoof about to fall, Li Ke—his demonic power awakened—wore a sinister grin.

"You worthless beast. Even if you represent the divine authority of the sky, what right have you to stand above me?!"

Terrifying magical energy rapidly gathered around the spear in Li Ke's hand. As it condensed, the energy surged so fast that it produced a deep rumble beyond the range of human hearing!

There was no flourish, no need for anything like a Noble Phantasm. Just a plain, unadorned spear throw!

"Fall! And become my sustenance!"

The magical energy accumulated by the Holy Grail over decades, the power of All the World's Evils, and the emotional energy he had absorbed instinctively all converged into this single strike!

At the same time, Ishtar, occupying the body of a little girl, looked at the hoof about to fall and burst into laughter.

"Gilgamesh! Look! This is your dear friend's second death! And it's the beginning of the destruction of the humanity you love!"

Her face was full of wild glee. But just as she thought victory was assured—

The Bull of Heaven screamed.

The spear, wrapped in purple-black energy, instantly pierced its enormous hoof and continued to ravage its body. Wherever it passed, the Beast's authority and power broke down the damaged areas into vast quantities of magical energy.

The hoof and bones, formed of magical energy, shattered piece by piece. Its body, powerful enough to destroy a civilization and sow the heavens, was helpless before this power, brimming with humanity's desires and longing. Amid the Bull of Heaven's screams, it began to disintegrate.

Its powerful body, a symbol of natural disaster, couldn't withstand this absolute attack. But to the people watching from more than ten kilometers away, a streak of ink-black light, piercing from earth to sky, had instantly punched through the enormous bull's hoof and head!

The Bull of Heaven fell. Its massive body began to crumble, dissolving into the most basic form of magical energy and rushing toward Li Ke.

Ishtar saw the Bull of Heaven's body collapse as she laughed. And the smile on her face naturally—

vanished.