Astolfo, completely oblivious to the somber atmosphere, moved closer to Mukuro Hoshimiya, his face full of curiosity.
"But, but, even if it wasn't Michael himself, having Noble Phantasm that uses his name is already incredibly powerful, right? How exactly did you obtain this Noble Phantasm?"
"... I forgot."
"Liar!"
"I really forgot."
Mukuro Hoshimiya turned her face to the window, not wanting to continue the topic.
The sky outside the window was still clear. The evening light turned the distant hills golden.
But she always felt that things were about to get turbulent.
evening.
Jeanne d'Arc followed the guidance of the Revelation, traversing the wilderness south of Trifas.
The Revelation told her that the Root the problem for the Red Faction lay ahead.
She had to find it, she had to find it before it was all too late.
But she was too late.
When Jeanne d'Arc crossed the last hill and saw the scene before her, she froze on the spot.
The earth is cracking open.
Something incredible is rising from the earth.
First came the collapse of the soil. The ground, spanning thousands of meters in radius, seemed to be lifted up from below by a giant hand, with the surface grass, shrubs, and rocks sliding away to reveal the massive structure hidden beneath.
Then came the stone pillars. Giant white stone pillars, bearing Mesopotamian patterns, pierced the ground, one after another, as dense as a forest.
Next came the garden. Upside-down plants cascaded down between the stone pillars, vines extending downwards, and flowers blooming towards the ground. The river flowed upstream, rushing from low to high, defying all the laws of physics.
Finally, there's the entire fortress.
A complete, enormous, and surreal floating island slowly rises from the ground.
Its base is a layered rock structure, surrounded by eleven massive, black slabs. Its top is filled with countless exquisite palaces and gardens, with green plants growing upside down and water flowing backwards.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
"This is..."
Jeanne d'Arc's voice was carried away by the wind.
It was too late. Her Revelation had led her here, but the Hanging Gardens of Babylon had already taken off.
The moment it completely left the ground, Jeanne d'Arc lost all possibility of intervention from the ground.
She could only look up as the floating fortress rose higher and higher, eventually hovering hundreds of meters in the air.
It blotted out the sky and blocked out the sun.
The interior of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
Semiramis stood in the throne room at the highest point of the garden, looking down at the ever-shrinking ground through the translucent floor beneath her feet.
The corners of her mouth finally turned up completely.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
She never truly possessed this wonder during her lifetime. The historical Hanging Gardens of Babylon were built by Nebuchadnezzar II for his queen, and had nothing to do with Semiramis.
It was later legends, later fabrications, and countless misunderstandings and misattributions that forcibly attributed ownership of this miracle to her.
The name of vanity is truly fitting.
But so what?
It is real now.
It truly floats in the sky, possessing an overwhelming power capable of changing the course of the entire war.
From her perspective as Magecraft, the construction of this Hanging Gardens of Babylon, from the collection of materials to the completion of the ceremony and its final ascent, can undoubtedly be called a great achievement.
"How about it?"
Semiramis turned around and looked at the Servant standing in a row behind her.
Karna stood on the far left, arms crossed, expressionless, without any extra reaction from beginning to end.
Atalanta stood in the middle, her cat ears perked up slightly, and her amber eyes were much wider than usual.
Her gaze swept across the garden's interior, taking in the physics-defying sights: plants growing downwards, water flowing backwards, and floating rock fragments.
"... Indeed, it's beyond imagination."
Achilles stood on the far right, his mouth agape.
His right forearm remained sealed, hanging motionless at his side. But at that moment, he couldn't care less about that; only one thought occupied his mind.
"Are you kidding me?"
Semiramis raised one eyebrow.
"What, are you not satisfied?"
"It's not that I'm dissatisfied, it's just outrageous! This entire island is flying! You call this Servant's Noble Phantasm? This is practically a weapon from the Age of Gods!"
"Of course." Semiramis crossed his arms and raised his chin slightly. "After all, it's one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Even if it's labeled as 'vanity,' a miracle is still a miracle."
Achilles' lips twitched, but he ultimately swallowed back the retort that was about to come out.
Amakusa Shirou entered through a side door of the throne room.
"Gentlemen, prepare to enter combat phase."
His voice was calm, but everyone present could feel the iron will beneath that calm.
Objective: Millennia Fortress. Capture the Greater Grail.
After dusk, it became completely dark.
The outer perimeter of the Millennia Fortress was the first to sound the alarm.
"... What is that?"
Caules stood atop the watchtower of the fortress, nearly dropping the telescope in his hand.
In the sky, a floating island is slowly approaching.
Its outline was drawn by the magical light emanating from it in the night, like an upside-down city floating beneath the starry sky.
Eleven massive, pitch-black slabs surrounded the fortress, each radiating an ominous glow.
Darnic saw it too.
He stood by the window of the main hall, his dark green eyes reflecting the shadow of the floating fortress, his pupils slightly contracting.
" Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Is Semiramis the Red Faction's Caster?"
Fortunately, he had already prepared for the Red Faction to take the initiative in attacking.
The Greater Grail is located beneath the fortress, and the Black Faction has no choice but to fight here, having no other option.
"All personnel, enter combat readiness."
Darnic's orders were transmitted throughout the entire stronghold via Magecraft communication.
Almost simultaneously, countless hatches opened at the bottom of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
Tooth-shaped Magecraft materials poured down from the sky like a torrential rain, densely covering a portion of the night sky.
The materials fell on the wasteland outside the fortress, and began to change the moment they touched the earth.
The soil churns, and bones grow.
Skeletons burst from the earth, one after another, their eye sockets flickering with dark red will-o'-the-wisps. They were armed with bone weapons: longswords, battle axes, and short spears.
Dragon Tooth Warriors.
And there are thousands of them.
The entire wilderness was transformed into a sea of bones in just a few minutes.
Meanwhile, the gates of the Millennia Fortress were wide open.
First to charge out were the android troops. Hundreds of androids with similar faces, wearing light armor and carrying weapons, advanced in neat square formations.
Their expressions were blank, their movements mechanical, but each of them possessed fighting abilities no less than those of an ordinary Magecraft.
Following closely behind was Avicebron's puppet army. Giant, gray-black humanoid puppets marched out of the city gates with heavy steps.
The two armies met on the plains surrounding the fortress.
The Dragon Tooth Warriors's bone sword slashed at the golem's rocky body, sending Mars flying. The android's Magecraft bullet struck the Dragon Tooth Warriors's chest, shattering his bones.
Minion vs. minion. Consumables vs. Consumables.
The real battle has not yet begun.
The current Red Faction Team (led by Amakusa Shirou Tokisada ): Saber Mordred, Lancer Karna, Archer Atalanta, Rider Achilles, Caster Shakespeare, Assassin Semiramis, Berserker Spartacus
Currently, the Black Faction faction (leader Darnic / Vlad III ) consists of: Saber Siegfried, Lancer Vlad III, Archer Mukuro Hoshimiya, Rider Astolfo, Caster Avicebron, Assassin Jack the Ripper, and Berserker Heracles.