From the very beginning, Anna had never thought of surviving.
Her purpose in manifesting this time was to defeat Gorgon and correct her mistakes—not to save humanity or this era.
What's more, Gorgon was her, and she was Gorgon. The sins Gorgon had committed, the crimes she had wrought, were her own as well.
Thus, Anna had long since resolved to vanish together with Gorgon.
"Our revenge, our sins—let us bring them to an end ourselves."
Anna smiled at Gorgon with the most serene expression she had ever shown.
Seeing her like this, Gorgon was momentarily dazed.
Forgotten memories began to resurface, little by little.
Once upon a time—she had smiled like that.
Once upon a time—she had been so easily satisfied.
Back then, she had neither thoughts of vengeance nor hatred toward anything. All she had was a small wish, a small dream—to live together with her two sisters on that island.
Even though the ending was destined to be tragic, those days were still worth remembering, still worth cherishing. Hatred had no place there.
Recalling it all, Gorgon whispered:
"Why did I ever forget?"
Perhaps it was because she truly had gone astray.
If so…
"To disappear here—perhaps that is not such a bad choice."
At that thought, the pain, hatred, and rage on Gorgon's face melted away completely, replaced by the same quiet serenity as Anna's.
Clang…
The two existences that were Medusa dissolved into motes of light, slowly fading away.
And as she was about to disappear, Anna turned her head toward Rozen.
After all—
"I must thank you, Master."
Leaving only those words, Anna and Gorgon merged into one stream of light, vanishing together.
But just as the light particles were about to dissipate, a figure streaked in through the scattering embers.
Hum!
Brilliant radiance burst forth from a dazzling golden light.
Rozen raised his right hand high, and from it the light of Miracle blazed forth.
Under that light, the fading particles suddenly halted, then all converged toward Rozen, merging into his body.
The marks of a contract flashed briefly, sending the light deep into Rozen's soul, inscribing it there forever.
"Phew…"
Only then did Rozen let out a breath of relief.
"As I thought—Anna and I fulfilled the conditions for an absolute contract."
Feeling the new weight within his soul, Rozen suddenly smiled.
"I helped you this much, and you think you can just slip away with a simple 'thank you'? The world doesn't work that way."
He pressed a hand against his chest, murmuring softly.
"From now on, I'll be in your care—Medusa."
Thus, this matter could finally be called complete.
The three goddesses had all been defeated, and the three goddess allience utterly destroyed.
The threat to this era had been safely resolved.
"Senpai!"
"Rozen!"
The calls reached his ears, bringing him back to his senses. Rozen looked around.
The many Servants who had finished their battles were gathering.
"Was it a success?"
Ryougi Shiki asked directly.
"Gorgon's Saint Graph has dispersed. She must be defeated, right?"
Ishtar descended from the sky aboard her Maana.
Hassan of Serenity, Merlin, Nobunaga, and Jeanne [Alter] also arrived.
Mash hurriedly asked:
"Where's Miss Anna? Where did Miss Anna go, Senpai?"
It seemed Mash already had a guess, and everyone's expressions grew heavy.
Rozen smiled gently at them.
"Don't worry." Pressing a hand against his chest, he said: "She's right here."
At those words, those who understood knew immediately.
"Thank goodness."
Mash let out a breath of relief.
"Looks like you've picked up another shadow, happy now?"
Jeanne [Alter] snorted, mocking him.
"As expected of Rozen-sama."
Hassan of Serenity, as always, could only admire him.
Even Ryougi Shiki and Ishtar seemed to realize the truth, and Merlin merely brushed it off with a "Well, this works too."
Only Nobunaga looked utterly lost, completely clueless about what had just happened.
Meanwhile, those within Chaldea, having witnessed the entire scene, cheered with joy.
"It's over."
"The last goddess has been defeated."
"All that remains is to recover the Holy Grail, and then—"
Olga Marie, Da Vinci, and Roman all voiced their thoughts.
But then came the problem.
"Where's the Holy Grail?"
Mash glanced around in confusion.
At her words, everyone was startled, quickly scanning their surroundings.
But—
"It's gone?"
"Why isn't it here?"
"Where did the Holy Grail go?"
One by one, they were dumbfounded.
Indeed.
Though they had defeated Gorgon, the Holy Grail was nowhere to be seen.
Of course.
"Don't bother looking. You won't find it."
Rozen spoke calmly.
"The Holy Grail was never with Gorgon."
His words shocked them all.
"The Holy Grail wasn't with Gorgon?"
Mash and the others stared in disbelief.
But in truth, there was nothing surprising about it.
"Anna already told us—Gorgon was summoned by the Holy Grail. That's why she could be summoned in reverse. Which proves someone used the Holy Grail to summon Gorgon."
Rozen explained coolly.
"And that someone wasn't Solomon, the Mage King. Which means the Holy Grail is in someone else's hands."
Who was that person?
The answer was simple.
"You've acquired quite the magical core, and become even stronger than Enkidu was in life. That magical core has served you well, hasn't it?"
Rozen lifted his head, staring into the sky.
"...!"
Everyone tensed, immediately raising their eyes.
There, a figure had appeared without their noticing.
"So… I was too late after all?"
A green-haired youth in white robes hovered in the air, his expression dark.
"Kingu…!"
Mash and the others instantly shifted into battle readiness.
And in that moment, the truth dawned on them.
"So that's it. The Holy Grail that the Mage King used to create this Singularity—it's in your possession. You used it to summon Gorgon, granted her Tiamat's authority, turned her into a composite divinity, and bestowed on her the protection of the Holy Grail, didn't you?"
Artoria [Alter] stepped forward, glaring at Kingu, and laid bare the truth.
Indeed.
The Holy Grail hadn't been with Gorgon—it had been with Kingu all along.
Like the Knights of the Round Table in the Sixth Singularity, Gorgon had merely been given the Holy Grail's blessing by its wielder.
Which meant—
"The one who took the Holy Grail from the Mage King, sought humanity's destruction, and created this Singularity—the true culprit is you, Kingu!"
Mash cried out.
But she was wrong.