Past, present, future.
Across the infinite parallel worlds, countless Holy Grail Wars have happened, are happening, and will happen.
Even among Holy Grail Wars as numerous as the stars, the scene unfolding now was exceedingly rare.
The oldest Hero King, Gilgamesh, was actually being suppressed.
The holy swords projected from the shimmering blue lake behind the boy knocked down every last one of the Golden King's weapons.
Saber, wrapped in wind-aspected magical energy, broke through layer after layer of attacks and defenses from the [Gate of Babylon] with the aid of [Instinct] and [Mana Burst].
She even stepped on the holy swords Shirou fired, blew apart the Hero King's lightning shield, and finally closed the distance to Archer himself.
"Haaah————!"
When Saber brought her invisible sword down on Archer at point-blank range, even the previously unflappable Hero King was forced to summon his golden armor to avoid being cut down on the spot.
Some might say that this was an unfair two-against-one.
But was it really?
One of the two suppressing the Hero King was not even a Servant, but a Master.
Not even an adult, but a child.
Though they were not connected by contract, Saber and Shirou were still, in essence, a Servant and a Magus fighting as a pair.
The moment the Hero King was forced onto the back foot by the coordination of such a standard combination, his dignity had already hit the ground.
Even so, Archer showed not the slightest sign of irritation. If anything, he seemed to be enjoying it.
Even at this point, Gilgamesh was still treating this as [play].
"...Hmph."
Archer elegantly evaded Saber's attack and leaped from one streetlamp to another.
At that moment, something caught the Golden King's eye.
At the rear of the battlefield stood the silver-haired, red-eyed doll, completely unguarded.
Because Saber had thrown herself into the battle, and Shirou was giving his all to hold back the [Gate of Babylon].
No one had noticed how exposed Irisviel's side had become.
"........."
A flash of cunning passed through Archer's arrogant eyes.
The Hero King had never believed there was anything wrong with attacking the enemy Master in the middle of battle.
After all, the oldest tyrant's code of conduct consisted of a single rule.
[I am the rule.]
So, among the next wave of a thousand Noble Phantasms, one tenth of them quietly shifted their aim toward Saber's Master as they loaded.
However, just as Gilgamesh was about to teach Shirou and Saber the meaning of [a king's unpredictability].
In the very next instant, perhaps for the first time tonight.
No, more precisely, for the first time since the Holy Grail War began, Gilgamesh felt danger quietly drawing near.
"!!!"
Archer's eyes narrowed in shock as he turned his head and saw an arrow hurtling toward the center of his brow at nearly the speed of light.
It was an arrow seemingly imbued with Assassin's specialty, [Presence Concealment].
More than that, the arrow itself had been forged from a holy sword.
A fatal arrow hidden among a thousand swords. That was what it meant to hide a tree in the forest.
If Gilgamesh had not possessed the highest rank of Clairvoyance, he likely would not have noticed it until it pierced his forehead.
"You!"
At the end of the Hero King's gaze stood the red-haired boy, a black recurved bow in his hands.
The one who had forged one of the lake's holy swords into an arrow and fired it was none other than Shirou Amamiya.
Archer remained outwardly calm and instinctively called forth one of the defensive Noble Phantasms hanging in the void, but—
The lightning shields had already all been destroyed in the King of Knights' reckless charge moments earlier.
Surprise showed on Gilgamesh's face. Was even that part of your calculations, mongrel!?
He had used thousands of holy swords to dull the enemy's guard and throw the surrounding flow of magical energy into disorder.
He had used Saber's entry into the battle to split the enemy's attention, while also destroying the nearby autonomous defensive Noble Phantasms.
It was entirely possible that even leaving Irisviel deliberately exposed to draw the enemy's attention had been part of the plan.
Every bit of setup until now had been for the sake of this one strike.
The final step was a perfected killing blow, completed with transcendent skill from the drawing of the bow to the release.
Even after the arrow had left the string, the red-haired boy still held the bow aloft, maintaining his stance as he murmured softly,
"Let me see how you dance too, Hero King."
"————!"
The arrow wrapped in holy sword mana came roaring in like a thunderbolt.
Though Gilgamesh sensed the attack in advance, it was already too late for a perfect evasion.
He could only twist his body backward as far as possible and jerk his head aside, barely avoiding that silent yet deadly arrow.
Because the arrow itself had been forged from a holy sword, it carried cutting power even in flight.
When Archer dodged it, blood from a grazing wound ran down his forehead.
For the first time in thousands of years, the ancient child of the gods once again tasted something called pain, and the humiliation of injury.
"Nice dance. It turns out the king has talent not just for putting on a show, but for dancing too."
Shirou lowered the black bow as it dissolved into the wind, then curled his lips and added,
"...Honestly, I thought you were going to fall off that streetlamp."
...
...
Crimson blood ran down from Gilgamesh's brow, splitting to either side as it passed over the bridge of his nose.
Even so, the oldest king of mankind did not change expression.
Gilgamesh stood high above with his arms folded, gazing sharply down at the red-haired child below.
"Answer me, Faker. Why did you not detonate it just now?"
These were words only the one asking and the one answering could understand.
That arrow Shirou had fired just now had been perfect.
Even the fact that it had not hit the target directly was perfect.
Because the moment it passed by the enemy, Shirou should have used the technique known as [Broken Phantasm].
The exploding holy sword arrow would have taken the Hero King's head with it.
And yet Shirou had not done so.
He had simply allowed the arrow to pass in front of the Hero King's forehead, leaving only a grazing wound.
Why had he not used [Broken Phantasm]?
Gilgamesh wanted to know the answer.
Shirou: "..."
If I told you I was out of mana, would you believe me?
Even after receiving reinforcement magecraft from Lady Avalon before going out, Shirou's total magical energy had only barely been enough to release a single [Lake of the Holy Sword].
After using it, he really did not have a single drop left.
Under those circumstances, there was no way he could use the extremely costly [Broken Phantasm].
Just firing that arrow a moment ago had already involved a fair bit of luck.
You might have thought Shirou was just holding his bow up afterward to strike a dramatic pose, but in reality he was so exhausted he could not even lower his arm.
Shirou would never let the enemy know how terrible his condition was, and of course he could not show weakness in front of Saber either.
"Because... there was no need."
The red-haired boy answered calmly, "Even if I killed you as you are now, it would not make me happy."
"......"
Everyone watching the battle held their breath, staring intently at the Golden King's face.
It felt like the stillness before a storm, the deepest darkness before sunrise.
Something big was coming.
"————Ha."
Gilgamesh suddenly covered his face and leaned back.
"Hahaha! Hahahaha! Hahahahahahahaha!"
The Golden King burst into wild laughter.
"?"
Everyone could not help but wonder. Had the arrogant Gilgamesh finally gone mad after being wounded by an enemy?
After laughing maniacally for what seemed like a full thirty seconds, Gilgamesh finally calmed himself.
"Ha... I see. So that is how it is.
It has nothing to do with whether you wear the body of a child or an adult. From the very beginning, you were already going all out in deadly earnest. Was I the only one too tone-deaf to notice?"
The Hero King... had understood.
The red-haired boy's repeated provocations and taunts from earlier, even going so far as to fight alongside Saber.
All of it had been an effort to force him to reveal his full strength.
There were many who felt fear, awe, trembling, or worship before the Hero King's power, but very few who understood that the king's greatness went even beyond that.
As for someone who felt dissatisfied by it, Shirou Amamiya might well have been the first.
...Interesting.
In the next instant, an unprecedented force began to pour out from Gilgamesh's body.
It was as though the Archer who had just wielded thousands of Noble Phantasms had merely been the king's shadow or projection.
At this very moment, Gilgamesh revealed the full majesty of the strongest Heroic Spirit.
"You certainly went to a great deal of trouble to force this king to fight seriously.
As a reward for showing me such a ridiculous clown performance, I shall respond in kind and become [serious] myself."
The golden Archer spoke with a smile full of boundless arrogance.
"After talking so grandly just now, do not disappoint me.
Let me see how many seconds a fragile false king like you can remain standing beneath the radiance of a true king.
From this moment onward. It is time for [judgment]."
With that, Gilgamesh opened the [Gate of Babylon] once more.
This time, it did not appear only as golden ripples behind him. Instead, it surrounded Shirou densely from every direction.
Unlike the weapons he had released earlier while clashing with [Lake of the Holy Sword], every Noble Phantasm manifested this time possessed even greater strength, hardness, and mystery.
And unlike before, when he had merely hurled weapons down in a disorderly fashion, these Noble Phantasms were wrapped in a certain aura unknown to Shirou, one that drew out even greater power.
For the boy from the Fairy Kingdom, this was the first time he had ever directly faced such vast, surging [divinity].
Gilgamesh raised his right hand in triumph, but then his expression suddenly froze.
...
...
Several minutes earlier.
Down in the underground workshop of his mansion, Tokiomi Tohsaka could no longer maintain his elegant composure.
Among Archer's words tonight, he had caught onto one key term.
Gilgamesh had called the red-haired boy Faker.
Tokiomi Tohsaka was completely stunned. Could Shirou Amamiya actually be the seventh Servant?
Was he not supposed to be the Master fighting on behalf of the Matou family!?
But if Shirou Amamiya was not a Servant, then who was the seventh Servant?
And if Shirou Amamiya was not a Master, then who was the seventh Master?
Whoever he truly was, he lay far beyond anything Tokiomi Tohsaka had imagined.
Not only did he possess enough firepower to destroy the sea demon in a single blow, he could even stand against the Hero King's [Gate of Babylon].
He might well be the greatest enemy in this Holy Grail War. And on top of that... he had formed an alliance with Einzbern.
How in the world... had things ended up like this!?
Ever since the fault appeared in the Spiritron Disk, Tokiomi Tohsaka had been responding with caution and speed.
He had mobilized all his familiars and Assassin to search aggressively for information on the seventh Servant.
He had even used the Church to lure the unknown Master into revealing themselves, going so far as to offer Command Spells as a prize, or rather bait.
In both information and initiative, our side should have held an absolute advantage, and yet...
Judging from the result, every move Shirou Amamiya made had perfectly slipped past his calculations.
Why?
What exactly went wrong?
How had that brat managed to hide himself and grow to this extent?
Tokiomi Tohsaka turned around in shock and looked behind him.
There was nothing there.
Even though there was clearly nothing there, he felt as if a pair of eyes had been watching his every move from beginning to end.
He felt as though he were living under Shirou Amamiya's shadow.
At that moment, Tokiomi Tohsaka noticed Archer's magical energy beginning to surge.
The instant he sensed his Servant's intent, the Magus's heart lurched.
No... Archer cannot be allowed to keep fighting tonight.
To commit to a decisive battle while the enemy's information remained so unclear was far too reckless.
Most importantly, if Archer lost here, that would mean Tokiomi Tohsaka would have no way to recover.
That was something he absolutely could not accept.
There is still a chance.
At worst, Faker kept me in the dark this entire time.
At best, I have finally discovered Faker's identity!
That's right. Now that he had the enemy's identity, it was still not too late to turn the situation around by taking advantage of his own side's strengths. There was no need to recklessly bet everything on a final showdown.
To remain elegant at all times and in all places. That was the Tohsaka family creed passed down through generations.
Tokiomi Tohsaka had always kept that creed close to heart, and now was the moment to put it into practice.
With that thought, the Magus lowered his gaze to the crimson mark on the back of his right hand.
"......"
Gilgamesh's raised right arm froze in midair.
He shifted his gaze away from the red-haired boy below and turned it toward the upscale residential district of Miyama Town, where the Tohsaka estate stood.
"Tokiomi, you bastard...!"
The Hero King ground his teeth, hatred plain on his face. "To dare interrupt my amusement whenever you please. You are growing bolder by the day."
As he spoke, the thousands of Noble Phantasms that had surrounded Shirou and the other two from every angle across all three hundred and sixty degrees dimmed at once and vanished into the night sky.
"That's enough for today."
Though Gilgamesh's tone was full of dissatisfaction, the fervor that had burned in his crimson eyes moments ago was already gone.
At this point, the displeasure in his heart outweighed even the battlelust that had been stirred.
Tokiomi Tohsaka had always treated the Hero King with the humility of a dutiful retainer, and Archer likewise acknowledged him as his Master.
But at last, Gilgamesh's patience with Tokiomi Tohsaka's conservative, tedious strategies was beginning to run out.
The Hero King reined in his anger and cast down his arrogant, unruly words.
"I'm leaving. I shall postpone your judgment until the day after tomorrow, boy. Be grateful and look forward to the king's visit.
The next time we meet, you had better show me your true form as a hero, or else..."
Only when the golden king began reciting his exit lines did Irisviel finally dare release the breath caught in her throat.
The back of her dress had long since been soaked through with cold sweat, and whenever the night wind brushed past it sent a shiver through her body.
That all-engulfing rain of Noble Phantasms still lingered in her vision. Several times tonight, she had imagined herself cut down and skewered in that storm of blades.
...Whew, we're saved. I really thought today was going to end here!
And just as she was about to relax.
"Running away, Hero King?"
The boy's clear voice cut through the frozen night.
Irisviel nearly burst into tears. Shirou, my good son, could you please say a little less!?
"Hmph... You can thank that mongrel's idiotic strategy for saving you, Faker."
With that, the Hero King's golden figure dissolved into spirit form and vanished completely.
Saber lowered her invisible sword. She exchanged a glance with Shirou in the distance, and the two nodded to each other in tacit understanding.
"So you were still here, King of Conquerors."
The red-haired giant stroked his chin and muttered, "No, after seeing the two of you struggle tonight, I find myself wanting you both as my companions more and more."
Saber drew her fine brows together, her silver-blue armored skirt giving a clear metallic chime as she turned.
"Shirou and I will never submit to anyone."
Rider said, "Saber, are you truly so dissatisfied with me?
But I suppose that is only natural. We are both kings, after all, so it is no surprise that we cannot accept one another... in that case, let us persuade each other with our swords."
Artoria curled her lips into a confident smile.
"That suits me perfectly. Why don't we settle it right n..."
Iskandar raised a hand. "Let's leave it for tonight. Your companion doesn't seem to be in very good shape."
"...What?"
Saber turned her head and saw the red-haired boy, pale as a sheet, unable even to stand properly.
"Shirou!"
In an instant she flashed to his side.
When her trembling fingers touched his burning skin, the peculiar dry sting of magical energy overuse pricked her fingertips.
The boy collapsed weakly into the King of Knights' arms, cold sweat plastering his bangs to his pale cheeks.
This is the toxic reaction caused by excessive magical energy depletion...
Saber bit down on her lip. Shirou had been forcing himself to hold on this entire time? I did not notice at all.
"Then until we meet again, King of Knights. Give my regards to that little one too."
With those words, Rider climbed onto his chariot, mounted the lightning, and raced off into the night sky.
Saber had no time to worry about anything else. She hugged the boy tightly in her arms.
"Shirou! Are you alright, Shirou? Pull yourself together!"
Irisviel hurried over and began casting a healing spell, emerald healing magecraft flowing from her fingertips.
"Ugh... Saber..."
Shirou seemed to have something he wanted to say.
"I'm here, Shirou! I'm right here!"
Saber gripped Shirou's hand tightly, only to hear him say with a pained expression,
"Your breastplate is digging into my head... it hurts..."
"Ah... I'm sorry..."
Artoria hurriedly dispelled her mana-woven armor and gently cradled the boy's face against her small, soft breasts.
"..."
Only then did Shirou finally reveal a peaceful expression.
And so—
After the battle with the Hero King, Shirou Amamiya collapsed from utter exhaustion and lost consciousness.
He was faking it.
As Shirou buried his face in that beautiful ideal land and savored the little reward after battle, he thought to himself.
...The rest is up to you now, Assassin-onee-san.
...
...
At the same time, in Miyama Town.
Only a few seconds after Gilgamesh vanished, the sight of Shirou collapsing in weakness also reached Tokiomi Tohsaka's eyes.
What...? How can this be!?
He had been forcing himself to hold on the whole time?
He was actually already completely unable to fight by then?
If Archer had remained there for even one second longer, he could have killed Shirou Amamiya with ease?
"..."
Tokiomi Tohsaka once again found himself questioning life.
Then my action just now, spending a Command Spell and angering the Hero King in order to recall Archer... was that not simply smashing my own foot with a stone?
No, wait... the night has only just begun.
Shirou Amamiya has completely lost the ability to fight.
Saber also consumed a great deal of magical energy in her battle with Archer just now.
This is the perfect moment to crush them...
Another brilliant plan formed in Tokiomi Tohsaka's mind, and he spoke to his distant disciple.
"Kirei, how long would it take to gather all the Assassins?"