Hassan of the Hundred Faces made his judgment the moment he saw the armor on Mash.
The knight's armor was a deep purple, and the patterns on the edges of the armor were almost identical to those of the knights from the Holy City Camelot.
The people of the Holy City.
In the desert.
There were only three people.
Why only three? Were they advance reconnaissance troops? Or outposts for a flanking maneuver?
No, this direction is the edge of the Pharaoh's territory; the knights of the Holy City wouldn't come from this direction.
Unless they're there to intercept them.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's heart sank.
Her mission this time was fraught with peril, with a near-certain death.
Led by a dozen or so ordinary soldiers from the People of the Mountain, they sneaked in during a gap in the Pharaoh's border patrol.
They used a specially made sleeping potion to knock out a target, put him in a cage, and then quickly ran back to the People of the Mountain's camp before being discovered.
The mission went very smoothly.
Everything went too smoothly.
So she was always on guard against something.
Then I ran into these three people.
Holy City. People of the Mountain. Pharaoh.
The three factions are at odds with each other on this land distorted by the Holy Grail.
The knights of the Holy City Camelot had a clear attitude towards the People of the Mountain: kill them on sight.
There are no exceptions.
Therefore, Hassan of the Hundred Faces had no intention of negotiating.
In this situation, striking first is the only option.
Stop them.
As soon as she uttered the command, seven or eight People of the Mountain warriors in black robes stepped out of the ranks, drawing their scimitars and short spears.
Their hands were shaking.
It wasn't excitement, it was nervousness.
Most of these people are ordinary People of the Mountain dwellers, not Servant, without Spirit Origin, Noble Phantasm, or any remarkable combat skills.
All they could do was use their bodies and weapons to buy time, allowing Hassan of the Hundred Faces to escape with the people in the cages.
Everyone was prepared to die.
"Levy--"
Mayuri spoke up.
Her long, pale golden hair fluttered in the hot wind, and her face was filled with the words "This is so troublesome."
She raised her right hand, palm facing forward.
Space began to distort.
Ritsuka Fujimaru's ears perked up the moment Mayuri uttered those two words.
not good.
She knew that name all too well.
Starting with Fuyuki, every time Mayuri called out this name, it was followed by a one-sided massacre.
" Mayuri!!"
Ritsuka Fujimaru's voice rose at least two octaves.
But it was too late.
"--Tan."
Mayuri finished calling out the names.
The void cracked open.
A spatial rift tore open above the sand dune, and a massive, dark purple body slid out from it.
The fluorescent green markings on its carapace reflected a cold luster under the desert sun, and three massive mandibles emerged from the cracks, while enormous wings, gradation-of-pink and purple, unfolded.
First, half of the body.
Then it's two-thirds.
Leviathan had not yet fully emerged from the spatial rift, but even the part of its body that had been exposed cast a huge shadow on the desert ground.
Shadows enveloped the entire escort team.
Everyone was shrouded in the shadow of Leviathan.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's mind went blank.
The People of the Mountain warriors, who had just drawn their scimitars and short spears, all dropped their weapons onto the sand.
An overwhelming fear welled up from the depths of the soul.
The oppressive aura of a primordial beast from the barbaric era, older than human civilization and belonging to the abyss, crushed everyone present like an invisible wall.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's knees were buckling.
"What is that?!"
"Impossible, this level of Spirit Origin origin..."
"They can't escape."
"Completely annihilated!"
Her heart was completely broken.
It's over.
one person.
No, that thing wasn't human at all.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces couldn't even find the right words to describe what she was seeing. If she had to use just one word...
Calamity.
That is the calamity itself.
The one who summoned this calamity was the seemingly ordinary girl with long, light blonde hair standing opposite them.
Did she just shout " Leviathan "?
Leviathan.
One of Hassan of the Hundred Faces's multiple personalities is an expert in ancient texts, and this personality begins to tremble the moment it hears the name.
Old Testament, Book of Job.
The greatest sin: Envy.
That was a monster recorded in the holy scriptures, representing one of the seven deadly sins.
How could anyone summon something like that??
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's thoughts stopped there, because she noticed that Leviathan's three massive jaws were opening towards her.
She closed her eyes.
Then...
Nothing happened.
She waited three seconds, five seconds, ten seconds.
Nothing happened.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces opened his eyes.
Leviathan has indeed completely emerged from the spatial rift.
A colossal body, over 500 meters tall, lay coiled on the desert, its tail swaying slowly in the air, its pinkish-purple wings half-spread, obscuring half the sky.
But it did not attack.
It lay there on the desert, its three massive jaws folded together, its huge, fluorescent green vertical pupils looking left and right.
Like a large dog that was called out by its owner but received no further instructions.
because--
" Mayuri! Don't eat people!!"
Ritsuka Fujimaru rushed up to Mayuri, grabbed Mayuri shoulders with both hands, and stared wide-eyed at her with her orange-gold eyes.
Do you know how difficult it is to encounter a living person in the desert?
What if we eat them all? Where will we find intelligence then?
There might not even be anyone near the water source! We could get lost in the desert!
Mayuri's head swayed back and forth as she was shaken.
"Okay, okay, stop shaking me, I'm dizzy..."
"Do you really know?!"
"Okay, okay. If you don't want to eat, then you don't have to."
Mayuri listlessly slapped Ritsuka Fujimaru's hand away and glanced at Leviathan.
Leviathan glanced back at her.
Their eyes met.
"Stay put," Mayuri said.
Leviathan's three massive jaws opened and closed, emitting a muffled groan.
Then he really just lay there and didn't move.
The 500-meter-tall behemoth lay on the desert, like a dark purple hill.
silence.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces and the twenty-odd People of the Mountain warriors behind her fell into an eerie silence.
Their minds were still reeling from the fear they had just experienced, but the scene before them was simply too absurd.
A girl in a school uniform called out, and a magical beast of Old Testament caliber obediently lay down and stood as punishment?
"Fu!"
A small white figure jumped off Mash's shoulder.
Fou.
The fluffy little beast dashed across the sand at an astonishing speed completely disproportionate to its size, leaped onto Leviathan's forelimbs, and then climbed up its dark purple carapace.
It climbed onto the top of Leviathan's head.
Fou sat atop Leviathan's massive head, her tail curled into a circle, her head tilted, staring at Leviathan's vertical pupils with her round eyes.
Leviathan stared at the furry ball on its head, smaller than its own eyeballs, with its enormous, fluorescent green vertical pupils.
They stared at each other, wide-eyed.
"Fu?" Fou tilted her head.
Leviathan's vertical pupils contracted slightly.
"..."
" Fou! Don't climb into dangerous places!"
Mash anxiously reached out her hand, but Fou was already firmly seated and showed no intention of getting down.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces watched this scene unfold.
Her multiple personalities fell silent behind the skull mask.
What exactly is going on?
A moment later.
After confirming that Mayuri would no longer allow Leviathan to eat people, Ritsuka Fujimaru, under Mash's protection, walked towards the escort team.
Mash walked ahead of Ritsuka Fujimaru, shield in hand, her purple eyes warily watching the person opposite her.
But the opposing side had completely lost their will to fight.
The People of the Mountain warriors didn't even have the courage to pick up their fallen scimitars; they huddled behind the cage, staring fearfully at the Leviathan lying in the distance.
Ritsuka Fujimaru stopped about ten steps away from Hassan of the Hundred Faces.
"Hello."
Ritsuka Fujimaru spoke up.
Her short, bright orange hair swayed slightly in the wind, the tuft of hair on her head stood straight up, and her orange-gold eyes held honesty and a hint of helplessness.
"Who are you? Why did you attack us just now? We've only just arrived from afar and we don't know you at all."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces looked at the girl in the white uniform in front of him.
Her mind was almost entirely filled with fear. Although the monster lying behind her wasn't attacking, its very presence was an invisible pressure, making every one of her personalities scream for escape.
But she still managed to speak.
"Look at the style of armor that purple-haired girl is wearing."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's voice came from behind the skull mask, trembling noticeably, but his words remained clear and coherent.
"You must be from the Holy City. If so, why would you ask such a question?"
" Holy City?"
Ritsuka Fujimaru paused for a moment.
Are you referring to Jerusalem?
The eye behind the skull mask flickered.
" Jerusalem?"
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's tone changed, becoming tinged with confusion.
"Those are from ancient Chinese almanacs."
Her voice lowered.
Jerusalem no longer exists.
The city was destroyed overnight by the Lion King months ago, leaving not even ruins.
Then, upon those ruins, the Lion King rebuilt a brand new city— the Holy City, Camelot.