The earth turned into scorched earth.
A piece of the mountain was dug out.
A terrifying scene unfolded under the moonlight.
Under the true name release of the Sword of Rupture, everything in front of Gilgamesh was destroyed and shattered, leaving no residue. Gilgamesh knew the power of the Sword of Rupture better than anyone. Seeing the scene before him, he was certain that the Beast in the form of a girl had been completely annihilated.
"That Beast wasn't fully formed yet, still in its infancy. It's worth celebrating that we were able to find and destroy it so quickly. Don't you think so, Master of the Holy Sword?"
Turning around, Gilgamesh looked at Arthur and Naoki, who had arrived late, behind him.
"You're late, Master of the Holy Sword. I've ended your journey. From now on, you can withdraw from this Holy Grail War without any burden. After all, now is not the time to continue the Holy Grail War."
Gilgamesh put away the Sword of Rupture and turned with a smile: "Anyway, the greatest threat has been eliminated. The next step is—"
"No! It's not over yet!"
"Sajyou Manaka is still alive!"
Arthur and Naoki shouted in unison. Jumping off Arthur's back, Naoki stared at the empty ground not far away. Though there was nothing there, he knew full well that Manaka was still alive and still there!
The same went for Arthur.
He had fought Manaka twice before. How could Manaka, who couldn't even be completely destroyed by the half-sealed Holy Sword, be defeated by a single strike from the Sword of Rupture? Moreover...this wasn't a boastful statement, but Arthur didn't think Manaka would die at the hands of anyone other than himself.
Gilgamesh couldn't understand the thoughts of this Master and Servant. The power of the Sword of Rupture was absolute. No one could survive under its might. The Beast in the form of a girl was undoubtedly dead.
*BOOM!*
Without any warning, as if a hot spring had suddenly been discovered, black mud suddenly erupted from the empty ground! And within that black mud, a figure slowly stretched out her hand, crawled out, and then stood up.
"Ahhh..."
The black mud flowed off her body, revealing a girl as pure and beautiful as an angel.
Those blue eyes gazed at Arthur, and Manaka suddenly felt as if she had fallen in love—no, she was indeed a girl who had fallen in love! An unusual blush appeared on both sides of her cheeks, as if she were shy or overjoyed.
"I always believed, believed that you would come to me, believed that we would meet again in the end—Saber, my prince!"
The girl's cheers, filled with satisfaction and surprise, reached everyone's ears under the moonlight.
"Saber! Saber! Saber!"
A fanatical fan—for some reason, Naoki thought of this description. In fact, Manaka's appearance wasn't much different from that of a fanatical fan.
Frowning, Naoki approached Arthur and said, "She keeps shouting Saber, Saber all day, but this person is now my Servant! Former Master and golden-haired loser whose fate has ended, hurry up and kill yourself and move on to the next set! Stop bothering me here!"
"L-Loser?" Manaka stared at Naoki, her eyes instantly filled with murderous intent and anger. "How dare you say that, you shameless woman! Saber has always been mine. He is my prince, who belongs only to me! Whether it's you, Ayaka, or Gilgamesh who just spoke to Saber... Contact with Saber without my permission... is absolutely not allowed!"
"Huh? You're jealous just because I talked to him. You're such a petty woman! Let me tell you, Arthur likes tolerant women who can tolerate him fooling around with his female subordinates for years before finally feeling jealous! You're a flat-chested, no-ass, narrow-minded little girl. You'll never be able to chase him even if you bother him for ten thousand years!"
"W-What did you say...!"
"What do you mean by 'you'? A brat is a brat. Is your poor vocabulary at the age of 14 making you unable to even utter a few curse words? Now you have one more thing to be ashamed of. Your image as the perfect girl is gone!"
After saying that, Naoki even flipped his the middle finger.
"Shameless girl!"
"You...AAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"
Although Naoki's Mana level was far lower, compared to the trolls and keyboard warriors from his previous life, Manaka wasn't even at the beginner level. Coupled with the hatred from being tortured by the curse for days, Naoki felt like he could keep cursing for another ten minutes!
But Manaka clearly didn't have that kind of patience!
*BOOM!*
Waves rolled, and black liquid flowed out from under Manaka's skirt. The black mud, like a tsunami, swallowed most of Mount Enzou in an instant, then turned into a mountain torrent that slammed into the roads and buildings at the foot of the mountain. Fires ignited wherever it reached, and the night sky was painted by the majestic red lotus flames, while in the areas covered by the black mud, death spread rapidly.
It was clear that Manaka was furious.
Gilgamesh aboard Vimana in the sky, looked down at the tragedy below and couldn't help but laugh: "HAHAHAHA! Hilarious! Absolutely hilarious! She's completely lost her mind over a few curse words. Is she even worthy of being called a Beast?"
"Well done, Saber Master. You're so bold, daring to insult the Beast directly. Your courage is truly commendable! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"I'm truly flattered to be praised by the King of Heroes. Compared to this... Arthur!"
Naoki rushed to the edge of Vimana and looked down. When the black wave surged out earlier, Gilgamesh only had time to bring his aboard Vimana, while Arthur, who was slightly farther away, was left behind—likely because Naoki had exploded his XP, causing him to unconsciously step back a few paces.
When he looked down, he saw two flashes of light in the black wave—Arthur and Diarmuid.
'We're fighting a wave of monsters. But it's useless if we only defeat the monsters. I need Arthur to release his Noble Phantasm, then I can use my Mystic Eyes... but there's no chance.'
It took time to release the seal of the Holy Sword, but the wave of beasts emerging from the black mud was too ferocious. As soon as one group was destroyed, another would immediately appear. Arthur had no time to release the Holy Sword.
"Well, Master of the Holy Sword and Lancer seem to be in a tough fight." Gilgamesh's voice, filled with amusement, sounded, "From your expression, it seems you have some countermeasures, Master of the Holy Sword. Consider this a reward for making me laugh. Be grateful. I'll create the time you and the Master of the Holy Sword need!"
In an instant—
*BUZZ!*
*SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!*
*SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!*
*SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!*
Hundreds of golden ripples spread across the sky!
Countless Noble Phantasms rained down like a storm, and the wave of beasts charging toward Arthur was swept away in an instant! Even the black mud around Arthur was repelled and scattered!
'Archer's support?!'
Arthur realized this and immediately understood that Archer was creating an opportunity for him.
"By the Command Spells! Arthur Pendragon, release the seal of the Holy Sword!"
"By the Command Spells! Arthur Pendragon, fulfill your mission and destroy the Beast!"
Except for the one he used at the port on the first night, Naoki's remaining two Command Spells were now all used by him! And Arthur fully accepted the will contained within them!
Holding the Holy Sword in front of him, Arthur began the ceremony to release the seals: "Thirteenth Seal—Decision Commences!"
[Kai, acknowledge that this is a battle for survival]
[Bedivere, acknowledge that this is a battle against those stronger than oneself]
[Lancelot, acknowledge that this is not a war against fairies]
[Mordred, acknowledge that this is a battle against evil]
[Agravain, acknowledge that this is a battle for truth]
...
As the seals were released one by one, the light emanating from the Holy Sword continued to shine and rise.
And finally, with the release of the seventh seal—
"Arthur, acknowledge that this is a battle to save the world!"
The final seal was released, and Arthur raised the Star of the Holy Sword in his hand, its light reaching the night sky, and called out its true name!
"It's over, Sajyou Manaka!"
"EXCALIBUR (Sword of Promised Victory)!"
The strongest sword, meant to be used only to save the world, for the third time, faced the Beast as its opponent and delivered the most merciless punishment!
At the moment of extreme light and heat, the black wave and the wave of beasts instantly evaporated and shattered, more thoroughly than when they were struck by the Sword of Rupture!
Standing in the midst of the black wave, with no intention of escaping, Manaka stretched out her hand and opened her heart to the starlight with a flushed face.
'This is... the light of my prince, emitted only for me... the light that belongs only to me.'
But it wasn't enough, this alone wasn't enough, this light shouldn't be seen by others, this light could only belong to her, just like her prince!
"Look at me! Sajyou Manaka!"
Suddenly, the voice of the vixen that Manaka hated the most sounded in the air.
Without caring if she would die from the fall, Naoki jumped down from Vimana without hesitation. He unleashed the Mystic Eyes he had just obtained a few hours ago and immediately cast them. The Mystic Eyes, as clear as the sky, gazed into Manaka's soul!
Then—
"Devour her! [Beast (I)]!!"
The gemstone... no, in that shimmering blue, even a faint rainbow light could be vaguely seen!
Amid Naoki's roar, the soul-eating tiger appeared behind Manaka, directing its bloody mouth toward the girl—but it couldn't bite!
It couldn't devour!
How could the evil soul of humanity, the soul connected to the Root, be eroded and sealed so easily?
Tears of blood flowed from the corners of his eyes, and his eyeballs screamed in pain. Naoki felt like he was going blind. The backlash from Excalibur made him feel like one foot was already in the gates of hell.
But he couldn't close his eyes!
Look at it! Erode everything about the soul before you, and transform it from the inside out!
"It's over, Sajyou Manaka!"
Finally, he reached Manaka. After fully entering the range of Excalibur's attack, Naoki used his remaining strength and punched Manaka's face with all his might!
'This is the curse you've been giving me all this time! I've been tortured by you for so long, I can't vent this anger unless I hit you!'
Thinking this, Naoki continued to stare at Manaka until the end, and then—
Reached the Root!