The silence lasted only a moment.
Then Iskandar suddenly burst into laughter.
"HAHAHAHA!"
The King of Conquerors stepped forward proudly, completely unfazed by the suffocating pressure radiating from the golden king.
"Well said!"
His booming voice echoed across the harbor.
"What a magnificent gathering!"
He placed a hand on his chest and declared loudly.
"I am Iskandar!"
"The King of Conquerors!"
The wind swept across the harbor as his declaration rang out like thunder.
Then Rider spread his arms wide and looked around at the assembled Servants.
"Well then!"
"If we are all gathered here tonight, allow me to make a proposal!"
His grin widened.
"Why don't the rest of you simply hand over the Holy Grail to me?"
The bold declaration echoed across the empty docks.
For a brief moment—
Silence fell.
Then Diarmuid Ua Duibhne spoke first.
"I refuse."
"The Grail is not something to surrender so easily."
Beside him, Artoria Pendragon calmly answered.
"I too seek the Grail."
"I cannot accept such a proposal."
Irisviel von Einzbern watched the gathering quietly behind Artoria.
"So many Servants gathered in one place…" she murmured softly.
Saber's Master maintained a calm expression, though her eyes carefully observed the strange Caster standing near Lancer.
Not far away, inside Rider's chariot, Waver Velvet looked like he wanted to disappear into the floor.
"W-Why are you doing this, Rider?!" he whispered frantically.
"There are too many Servants here!"
But Rider only scratched his beard.
"Hm."
"That's troublesome."
Before he could continue—
A cold voice descended from above.
"Mongrels."
Golden ripples spread through the air as weapons slowly emerged behind Gilgamesh.
"To think you insects would speak of claiming what already belongs to me."
His crimson eyes gleamed with contempt.
"There is only one king worthy of the Grail."
"And that king is I."
Iskandar merely glanced toward the golden king before shifting his attention back to Ren.
"Well, well… what about you, Caster?"
Ren blinked, pointing at himself.
"Eh? Me?"
He thought for a moment before shrugging.
"You can take that silly cup if you want."
"That thing isn't even as useful as a trash can."
For a brief moment, the dock fell silent.
From the chariot, Waver blinked.
"...A trash can?"
Rider raised an eyebrow in surprise.
After all, if someone answered the call of the Holy Grail War, there was usually a wish they hoped the Grail would grant.
Even Irisviel tilted her head slightly.
"A trash can…?" she murmured quietly, clearly puzzled by the strange comparison.
But before Rider could ask anything further—
Gilgamesh's expression darkened.
"Mongrel."
The word came out colder than before.
"Did you just say my treasure is not even as good as a trash can?"
As he spoke, dozens of golden portals flared open behind him.
The tips of countless weapons slowly emerged from the Gates of Babylon.
The other Servants immediately grew wary...those were lower-ranked Noble Phantasms and the amount was staggering
Even if the weapons appeared to be lower-ranked Noble Phantasms, that did not make them harmless. Being struck by even one of them would still be lethal.
Meanwhile, Ren simply pinched his chin thoughtfully, completely ignoring the killing intent filling the air.
"Eh?"
"I mean, think about it."
"That silly cup can't even hold trash properly—it just spills everything everywhere."
"But a trash can?"
He nodded to himself.
"A trash can holds trash perfectly and it won't disappoint you!"
If Stelle saw this, she would definitely recognize Ren as her family from a different mother and father, after all people who value trash can are family!
The surrounding Servants stared at him in stunned silence.
Even Rider looked momentarily speechless.
Inside the chariot, Waver grabbed his head.
"Why is he provoking Archer?! Is he insane?!"
More importantly—
Did he not realize he was about to be shot by a storm of Noble Phantasms?
"HAHAHA! I've decided—I will kill you first!"
As if on cue, countless Noble Phantasms shot forward from the golden portals behind Gilgamesh.
The weapons streaked across the night sky like meteors, all aimed directly at Ren.
BOOM!
The dock exploded in a violent blast.
Concrete shattered.
A massive crater formed where Ren had been standing just moments before, the impact sending smoke and dust billowing into the air.
Irisviel's eyes widened slightly.
"...Saber."
But Saber did not move.
She continued watching the smoke carefully.
For a moment, nothing could be seen through the thick cloud of debris.
Gilgamesh crossed his arms with a satisfied smirk.
But just as he was about to turn his attention to the other Servants—
"Ugh… you're really hot-tempered."
A voice echoed from within the smoke.
"I bet you don't have many friends."
Waver nearly fell out of the chariot.
"HE'S STILL ALIVE?!"
All eyes turned toward the crater.
Slowly, a figure stepped out of the dust.
Ren brushed some dirt off his coat as if nothing had happened.
There wasn't a single scratch on him.
Then he sighed.
"You know, there's a rule in fights."
He raised a finger as if giving a lecture.
"As long as there's smoke after a huge attack…"
He paused dramatically.
"The target is never actually harmed."
Ren tilted his head thoughtfully.
"Well… unless this was a Kamen Rider show."
The harbor fell silent again.
Seeing Ren still standing there unharmed, Gilgamesh's expression twisted in anger.
The golden king raised his hand again.
Behind him, the rippling portals multiplied.
This time, the weapons that emerged were clearly far more powerful than before.
Several Servants immediately recognized them.
Higher-ranked Noble Phantasms.
Standing behind Artoria Pendragon, Irisviel quietly watched the scene unfold.
"…Saber."
"I know," Saber replied calmly, her gaze fixed on the golden portals.
Without hesitation, Gilgamesh fired another volley.
The weapons shot forward like streaks of light, tearing through the air as they rushed toward Ren.
But Ren only smirked.
His plan had worked perfectly.
Whoosh.
Just before the barrage could reach him, a portal suddenly opened in front of Ren.
The portal did not lead behind him.
Nor did it redirect the attacks.
Instead—
It swallowed them.
One after another, the Noble Phantasms flew directly into the portal and vanished.
The weapons disappeared into the Containment Zone as if falling into a bottomless abyss.
For a brief moment, the battlefield went quiet.
Inside Rider's chariot, Waver frowned.
"…Huh?"
He leaned forward slightly.
"…Where did the weapons go?"
Rider scratched his beard.
"Hm."
"Interesting."
Back on the dock, Gilgamesh's voice thundered across the harbor.
"MONGREL!"
His eyes burned with fury.
"What have you done to this king's treasures?!"
Ren only laughed, the grin on his face openly mischievous.
His plan had been simple from the very beginning.
He intentionally provoked Gilgamesh, baiting him into launching wave after wave of weapons.
Then, at the perfect moment, Ren opened a portal directly to his containment zone.
Normally, the treasures of Gate of Babylon would automatically return to Gilgamesh after being used.
But those weapons had now crossed into a completely different dimension.
Inside Ren's Containment Zone.
And the moment they entered that isolated space—
The connection between Gilgamesh and his treasures was severed.
Which meant one very important thing.
Those Noble Phantasms… were no longer returning.
Ren clasped his hands behind his back, smiling like someone who had just found a box of free loot.
"Well…"
He tilted his head slightly.
"Thanks for the donations."
For a second, no one spoke.
Then inside the chariot, Waver froze.
"…Donations?"
He slowly turned his head toward Ren.
Then toward Gilgamesh.
Then toward the empty sky where the Noble Phantasms had disappeared.
His eyes widened.
"…Wait."
"…WAIT."
He grabbed Rider's cloak.
"RIDER!!"
"HE JUST STOLE ARCHER'S NOBLE PHANTASMS!!"
Rider stared at Ren for a moment.
Then his grin slowly spread across his face.
"HAHAHAHA!"
"Well done, Caster!"
"That takes some guts!"
Meanwhile, behind Saber, Irisviel quietly whispered:
"…He stole them."
Saber did not look away from Ren.
"…Yes."
And several Servants present realized the same terrifying fact.
The man standing in front of them had just robbed the King of Heroes in the middle of battle.
And judging by Gilgamesh's murderous glare—
He had no intention of letting that humiliation pass.
More golden portals opened behind him.
Then another massive volley of weapons rained toward Ren.
This did not mean Gilgamesh was stupid.
On the contrary, the King of Heroes believed that everything in the world had its limits.
And that included Ren's strange ability.
'Could he really swallow every treasure I possess?'
Gilgamesh believed the answer was no.
After all, the treasury of the Gate of Babylon was vast beyond measure. The number of Noble Phantasms within it was countless, and some of them were enormous—one of them alone was a sword as tall as a tower.
Eventually, Ren would reach his limit.
And when that happened, the treasures would naturally return to their rightful owner.
Or so Gilgamesh believed.
Unfortunately for him—
He had miscalculated.
Gilgamesh judged Ren's ability based on the rules of this world.
But Ren…
…was an anomaly.
And anomalies could not be measured by the standards of normal reality.
So here they were.
With Gilgamesh unknowingly donating a massive amount of legendary weapons.
Minutes passed.
Nearly ten of them.
The other Servants simply watched as the bizarre battle continued.
Weapons poured endlessly from golden portals.
And one after another—
They vanished into Ren's portal.
Inside Ren's Containment Zone, a literal mountain of Noble Phantasms had begun to form.
Meanwhile Ren glanced briefly toward the dimensional portal leading to his containment space.
Seeing the absurd pile of weapons accumulating there—
He sighed.
"…Okay, that's getting ridiculous."
Despite everything, Ren's physical body was still that of a normal human.
His brain was beginning to struggle with the sheer amount of things happening at once.
Even though he could rely on the power of SCP-2030's reality manipulation, he deliberately avoided using that power directly on his own body.
If something went wrong while altering himself, there was no guarantee he could undo the damage.
Meanwhile, Gilgamesh's confidence was beginning to waver.
'Why…?'
Why was this man still standing?
As a Caster, his constitution should have been far lower than Gilgamesh's own Archer-class body.
And the amount of magical energy required to continuously use such a strange ability should have been enormous.
Yet Ren continued standing there casually, swallowing dozens upon dozens of Noble Phantasms.
Just as the tension reached a strange stalemate—
Swoosh.
Something moved above them.
A dark shadow fell from the night sky.
For a split second—
No one reacted.
Then—
BOOM.
A figure clad entirely in black armor crashed down onto the harbor floor.
The impact shattered the concrete beneath his feet.
The Servants immediately turned toward the newcomer.
Even Gilgamesh's anger paused slightly.
"…Another one?"
The black knight did not speak.
He simply stood there, surrounded by an aura of violent madness.
Then suddenly—
One of the weapons floating behind Gilgamesh shot forward.
The blade streaked through the air like lightning.
But before it could strike—
CLANG.
The black knight caught it.
Barehanded.
For a brief moment—
Even Gilgamesh looked surprised.
The weapon trembled violently in Berserker's grip.
Then the black knight swung it.
The stolen blade roared through the air and smashed directly into another of Gilgamesh's floating weapons.
Steel exploded against steel.
Sparks scattered across the harbor.
Gilgamesh's expression darkened.
"…Another mongrel dares touch my treasury."
Now there were two thieves daring to steal his treasures.
His voice dropped dangerously.
Behind him, dozens more portals began to open.
Their actions had driven the King of Heroes into a true fury.
To the point that he ignored the desperate pleas of his Master, Tokiomi, who warned him to stop wasting mana before it ran dry.
Seeing the arrival of the black knight—
Ren quietly sighed in relief.
"…Finally."
Because after ten minutes of nonstop weapon-catching…
He was honestly getting tired.
The black knight moved.
Without warning, Berserker kicked off the ground with explosive force.
The concrete beneath his feet shattered as he shot toward Gilgamesh.
Another weapon flew from the golden portals.
CLANG.
Berserker caught it midair.
The Noble Phantasm trembled violently in his grip before the black knight swung it like a club, smashing aside several incoming blades.
Metal collided with metal as sparks burst across the harbor.
For the first time since the battle began, Gilgamesh's expression showed genuine irritation.
"Filthy mongrel."
More portals opened behind him.
Dozens of weapons shot forward in a storm of steel.
But Berserker did not retreat.
He charged straight through the barrage.
Weapons slammed into his armor, yet the black knight continued advancing like a mad beast.
One blade grazed his shoulder.
Another struck his chest.
Still he kept moving.
Closer.
Closer.
Until he stood directly before the King of Heroes.
Then Berserker swung.
The stolen Noble Phantasm roared through the air.
Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed.
Another portal opened instantly in front of him, releasing a weapon to block the strike.
The collision shook the harbor.
Even Rider whistled from the side.
"Well now… that one's quite the wild dog."
But Gilgamesh had already lost interest in playing.
His gaze turned cold.
"Tokiomi."
Far away, hidden within the city, Tokiomi Tohsaka clenched his fist.
The battle had already gone too far.
Facing multiple Servants at once while wasting enormous amounts of mana was not part of the plan.
He could not allow Archer to continue fighting recklessly.
Gritting his teeth, Tokiomi raised his hand.
A Command Spell burned brightly on the back of it.
"I command you… Archer."
"Withdraw from the battlefield."
A red light flashed.
Across the harbor, Gilgamesh's expression twisted with undisguised fury.
"…Tch."
The Command Spell burned through his body, forcing his limbs to halt mid-motion.
For a moment, the King of Heroes trembled with rage.
"…That worthless magus…"
Golden portals flared violently behind him as the pressure of the Command Spell tightened.
"Damn it, Tokiomi!"
"You dare force me to retreat?"
His crimson eyes swept across the battlefield, blazing with murderous intent.
They stopped briefly on Ren.
Then shifted to Berserker.
The fury in his gaze deepened.
"You mongrels…"
His voice dropped into a venomous growl.
"One steals my treasures like a filthy rat…"
"And the other dares to lay hands on them."
Golden light swallowed his form as the Command Spell dragged him away from the battlefield.
But even as the portal began pulling him back, Gilgamesh spat his final words with absolute hatred.
"Enjoy this moment while you can, you wretched thieves."
"The next time we meet…"
His voice echoed like thunder.
"I will butcher you both."
Then the golden light collapsed.
And the King of Heroes vanished from the harbor.
For a moment—
The harbor fell silent.
The black knight stood motionless where he landed.
The stolen weapon in his hand slowly crumbled into light dot.
Then—
His head turned.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
His gaze locked onto Artoria Pendragon.
The moment he saw her—
The madness surrounding him exploded.
"AAAAAA—!"
A monstrous roar tore from Berserker's throat.
The black knight lunged forward.
Straight toward Saber.
Behind Saber, Irisviel von Einzbern gasped.
"Saber!"
Artoria raised her invisible blade instantly.
Steel clashed as Berserker's attack crashed down upon her.
The impact shook the ground beneath their feet.
From the sidelines, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne tensed.
But before he could move—
A sharp voice echoed through the night.
"Lancer!"
From a distant rooftop, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald issued a command.
"Assist Berserker."
"Attack Saber!"
Lancer's eyes widened slightly.
"…Understood."
With a swift step forward, the knight of the twin spears joined the battlefield once more.
Now two Servants rushed toward the King of Knights.
And the harbor erupted into battle once again.
Meanwhile, standing slightly off to the side—
Ren watched the chaos unfold.
To be honest, Ren was puzzled.
Why in the world had Kariya Matou still summoned Berserker and joined the war?
The moment Berserker appeared on the battlefield, Ren had already used the traits of SCP-2030 to locate the Servant's Master. And sure enough, the one connected to Berserker was Kariya Matou.
But that didn't make sense.
in Fate/zero, Kariya had become a Master in the Holy Grail War for one reason: to save Sakura Matou.
Now that Sakura was already in Ren's custody, there should have been no reason for Kariya to participate in the war anymore. If anything, the more reasonable reaction would have been for him to desperately search for Sakura's whereabouts rather than throwing himself into a deadly battle between Servants.
Ren rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
Unless…
That old worm had scammed him again.
Ren's eyes narrowed slightly as the image of Zouken Matou came to mind.
As a fossil that had been scheming for centuries, tricking someone like Kariya into joining the war again didn't seem difficult at all.
After all—
Manipulating desperate people was practically Zouken's specialty.
After thinking about it for a moment, Ren decided not to worry about it anymore.
Whatever the reason behind Kariya joining the war, it was not something he needed to solve tonight.
Right now, the battlefield in front of him was far more entertaining.
Ren casually reopened the pizza box in his hands.
The warm smell of pepperoni drifted into the cold harbor air.
He grabbed another slice and took a bite while watching the fight unfold between Artoria Pendragon, Berserker, and Diarmuid Ua Duibhne.
Steel clashed violently in the distance.
Saber struggled to keep up with Berserker's relentless assault while Lancer circled the battlefield like a predator waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
Meanwhile—
Ren simply watched while eating pizza.
After finishing another bite, he casually walked toward the large chariot parked nearby.
Inside it sat Iskandar and his very stressed Master, Waver Velvet.
Ren lifted the pizza box slightly.
"Want some?"
Rider looked down at the box.
Then he burst into laughter.
"HAHAHAHA!"
"You are truly a strange one, Caster!"
Without hesitation, Rider grabbed a slice.
The massive king took a bite—
Then his eyes widened slightly.
"Oh?"
"This is excellent!"
He immediately handed another slice toward Waver.
"Boy! Eat!"
Waver looked like he wanted to refuse.
But under Rider's enthusiastic stare, he slowly accepted the slice.
"…Thank you…"
Soon the three of them were simply standing there—
Watching the chaotic battle unfold.
Minutes passed.
Sparks flashed as blades collided again and again across the harbor.
Then suddenly—
Berserker staggered.
The violent aura surrounding him flickered.
Far away, Kariya Matou had reached his limit.
Unable to sustain the enormous mana consumption any longer, Berserker was forcibly recalled.
The black knight roared one last time before his body dissolved into dark mist.
The moment Berserker disappeared, the battlefield grew quiet.
Lancer lowered his spears.
Then he spoke calmly toward Saber.
"It seems our duel must wait for another day."
A moment later, a command from Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald reached him.
Lancer nodded slightly.
"Understood."
With that, the knight of the twin spears stepped back and vanished into spirit form.
The harbor finally returned to silence.
Rider stretched his arms lazily.
"Well then!"
"Looks like the show is over for tonight."
He glanced toward Ren.
"Caster, that was quite an entertaining evening."
Waver nodded nervously.
"Y-Yeah… thanks for the pizza…"
Then Rider turned toward Saber and Irisviel von Einzbern.
"We will meet again tomorrow!"
With a booming laugh, Rider climbed back into his chariot.
The divine bulls roared as lightning flashed across the sky.
A moment later—
The chariot vanished into the night.
Ren closed the pizza box.
"Well… that was fun."
Without bothering to stay any longer, he turned around and casually walked away from the harbor.
Behind him, Saber and Irisviel remained standing in the quiet docks.
Hidden in the shadows somewhere nearby, Kiritsugu Emiya continued watching the battlefield in silence.
Meanwhile Ren simply stretched his arms lazily.
"…Time to sleep."
Then he headed back toward his hotel, leaving the aftermath of the battle behind.
==============
Author's Note
The issue I mentioned has been resolved, so I'll be continuing the updates. Thankfully it didn't take too much of my time.
Anyway, if you notice any plot holes while reading, feel free to point them out. I'll take note of them and try to fill the gaps in the next chapter.
Thank you for your support! Hope you enjoy the Fanfic
P.S Don't forget to leave a review, hehe (ㆆᴗㆆ)