As the late evening glow faded on the plain, a faint crimson hue painted the white clouds into fiery streaks.
Under the red twilight, the entire plain lay in dim obscurity.
The dusk carried chaos, the air laced with an unusual tension.
In mere minutes, Roy's group had fully prepared, ready to assault the Blood Fort Andromeda.
The Demon God Pillars within weren't idle either. With waves of peculiar mana spreading, visible layers of robust bounded fields rose above the Blood Fort Andromeda.
As Roy's side geared up, the enemy hadn't sat still. They were fortifying the Blood Fort Andromeda's defenses, transforming it into an impregnable magical stronghold.
This was meant to thwart Roy's impending attack, buying time for Tiamat's unsealing.
"Oh my, what sturdy defenses. Those Demon God Pillars came prepared… quite the headache."
Merlin scratched his head, his tone feigning distress.
His sly grin, however, betrayed no real concern.
"Indeed. A specialized bounded field, built with the Holy Grail and leyline mana, is tricky. Even for Ishtar, breaking it would require her Noble Phantasm at full power, but…"
"Such tedious defenses are meaningless against our assault. We won't follow their scripted play."
Stretching casually, Roy spoke with anticipation, eager to open the chapter called the final battle.
Tezcatlipoca exhaled a smoke ring, saying slowly, "Looks good. Shall we get started, Master?"
"Oh, I've been itching to land a heavy punch on that Mother of Genesis's head."
Quetzalcoatl cracked her knuckles.
"Indeed, it's time. Merlin, Mash, Ritsuka, are you ready?"
"No worries, Roy. I'm on standby."
"We're fully prepared, Roy-senpai."
Clutching the Holy Grail Roy entrusted her, Ritsuka's eyes gleamed with resolve.
The Seventh Singularity's peril far surpassed the previous six.
Fresh in Mesopotamia, she'd nearly died to beasts when separated from Mash. Resisting monsters, reaching Uruk, and rallying forces against the Demon God Pillars, all were led by Roy-senpai. Without him, Ritsuka couldn't imagine restoring this Singularity.
Yet, despite being a burden since arriving, she was given a critical role in the final battle.
She had to succeed.
During the battle planning, Roy told Ritsuka, Mash, and Merlin their support was vital.
Fighting inside the Blood Fort Andromeda would fall into the enemy's trap.
Though their forces were strong enough to hold their own, it would drag them into the enemy's pace. The Demon God Pillars, Humbaba, and Karna weren't the true foes, mere elite obstacles before the final boss. Entangling here would waste time.
Time was their most precious resource.
Tiamat's unsealing progressed with each passing moment, worsening their odds the longer they delayed, so…
Roy planned to unleash full power alone, obliterating the Blood Fort Andromeda and its ritual in one blow, forcing the enemy into the battle's prelude.
But this required cover and amplification.
Hence, Roy waited for Merlin before acting.
Merlin would stack buffs to maximize Roy's output, using illusions to mask his actions, ensuring the Demon God Pillars wouldn't notice until it was too late.
Ritsuka would lead a ritual, using the Holy Grail and Command Spells at the critical moment to push Roy beyond his limits.
Across the Seventh Singularity, only Ritsuka, as a Master, could do this besides Roy.
When given this vital task, Ritsuka hesitated, questioning why her, a magic novice, wouldn't botch it.
Roy shook his head, smiling. "This doesn't need a skilled magus, but a Master who can match my rhythm."
"Ritsuka, you've crossed six perilous Singularities, facing trials with heroes from countless eras. As a Master, your talent is unmatched. I trust your choice and entrust this to you."
"I'll pseudo-materialize as a Servant and contract with you, gaining Command Spell boosts. I'll supply my own mana; you just need to use a Command Spell when I go all out. Can you do it?"
Moved by Roy's trust, Ritsuka didn't hesitate, raising her arm to prove herself.
Back on the battle's hill.
A vast, unprecedented bounded field unfurled beneath Roy's feet.
Mash and Ritsuka's expressions turned grave, more resolute than ever.
They'd always been the ones protected, reaching this point through others' aid.
Not a skilled magus, nor a proper Servant.
Yet, this imperfect self was told by Roy, "You're my most trusted allies."
They had to honor that trust, giving their all, refusing to fail!!
"Mash…"
"Yes, senpai."
Mash raised her Round Table shield, activating a pre-set magical circle, stabilizing the field below.
[Wall of Chalk Obscured in Time]
[Wall of Firmly Honorable Snowflakes]
A gentle yet steadfast protective force enveloped Roy and Ritsuka. Mash began her first chant: "True Name, release. I stand at the seat of calamity. This heals all wounds, all grudges, our homeland. Manifest! Lord Camelot!!!"
With Mash's raised shield, a flawless, snowflake-like wall rose on the plain, its sturdy, protective power encasing Ritsuka and Merlin, leaving Roy and Mash standing side by side, gazing afar.
This white phantom city was Camelot from Arthurian legend, symbolizing the kingdom's golden age.
United, the Knights of the Round Table could repel any barbarian or monster.
A snowflake barrier, unyielding against calamity and pain, as long as its wielder's will held firm.
Merlin, seeing this, began his magical incantations.
[Illusion A]
[Dreamlike Charisma A]
[Hero Creation EX]
These were Merlin's potent enhancement spells, pushing magi or Servants beyond their limits.
In the Fourth Holy Grail War, Roy, as a Demi-Servant, matched Artoria thanks to these.
Now, with that power returned, Roy felt in peak condition.
He needed only to maximize the next move's power, amplifying it fully to erase the enemy and target alike.
This strike would herald the battle's prelude.
Roy's icy blue eyes glowed as he raised his hands, chanting the spell's incantations.
"Rise, Green Star, Silver Desert, under the Black Sun."
"By the Command Spell's name, unleash your full power, Roy-senpai!"
At Roy's mana peak, Ritsuka used her precious Command Spell.
A crimson flash surged, elevating Roy's presence further.
All was ready, his mana and magic at their zenith.
"Ascend in the sky."
"Reverse the void, between surface and core."
No steps skipped, this fully chanted, amplified strike surpassed its base power fivefold.
"Third Magic · Mana Conversion · Full Power · Annihilation Mode!!"
With a terrifying mana eruption, a dark purple light coalesced at Roy's fingertips.
Even Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl paled, awestruck by the oppressive force.
"What a move…"
"Its mana scale defies modern magecraft logic, surpassing the Lion King's holy punishment in Camelot by magnitudes!! What's condensing at his fingertips? Can humans wield such magic?"
Dr. Roman stared at the spiking gauges, his dark-circled eyes wide with disbelief.
"Its mana structure seems to compress endlessly, repeating the process…"
Da Vinci, equally stunned by the mana scale, tapped furiously at detection devices, trying to analyze its illogical composition.
By modern magus values, magus, across generations, poured all into pursuing the "Swirl of the Root," the truth of magecraft.
Any power gained was a mere byproduct, a means to that truth.
Though magus varied in strength due to magecraft types, one constant held: modern magus couldn't rival Age of Gods magus, heroes, or gods.
This wasn't just a mystical gap but a fundamental truth.
No matter how strong, magus were biological, limited beings. Injured, they bled; mana beyond control led to collapse. The body was a vessel with limits.
Even Solomon, the King of Magecraft, was bound by this.
That was reality, truth. So why this scene?
"Let this strike open the battle's prelude."
The youth before Chaldea and the Servants shattered magecraft's constants with ease.
Howling winds tore plains' flora to shreds. Terrifying mana coalesced and collapsed, forming a miniature black hole at Roy's fingertips. Small yet lethal, its mana and pressure felt fatal.
Then…
Roy gently opened his palm, lifting a finger with delicate grace.
In that flick, the world seemed to freeze.
An indescribable force roared from his fingertip, flashing briefly.
A purple arc, like lightning, burst forth and vanished.
Ritsuka couldn't see it, nor Mash, nor Ishtar. Only Merlin, with Clairvoyance, grasped what happened.
"Perfect. Everyone, move out."
Roy, finishing, gave Ritsuka and the others a thumbs-up, smiling brightly.
At the Blood Fort Andromeda.
Sensing the sudden purple gleam's terrifying pressure, Humbaba snapped awake from slumber, survival instincts blaring. The three remaining Demon God Pillars, shaken, lost their composure.
They halted the ritual, focusing mana on the Blood Fort Andromeda's defenses, raising barriers to block the apocalyptic strike.
Humbaba opened its maw, summoning golden shields from the Golden City, curling within to tank the thunderous blow with its body.
The Third Magic's power was a gift from Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, the Holy Maiden of Winter, after the Fourth Holy Grail War.
Unlike magus obsessed with magecraft, Roy's Third Magic development was shallow. Even with Einzbern research, he focused only on soul and mana applications.
Post-Grail War, he dashed to Fuyuki for Touko and Shiki, then Europe for Einzbern data, then London for Artoria and Clock Tower issues, and was roped by Zelretch into handling Arcueid before Merlin dragged him here.
A year as a cosmic firefighter left no time to refine the Third Magic.
His approach was pragmatic: max immortality, dump rest into output, fix flaws later.
This move was his maximum scale, the Third Magic's destructive pinnacle.
Condensing mana repeatedly, using all circuits to output, compress, and purify, he controlled it with honed precision, forcing it to his fingertip.
Hundreds of compressions neutralized and repelled the mana's limits, forming a black hole-like force, sucking and crushing everything in its path, living or dead.
Perfected since facing the Child of Einnashe, its power exceeded expectations. Roy was confident even Arcueid, who faced Zelretch, would suffer against it.
Formless, the purple arc was imperceptible, uncognizable.
Only its devastating force, tearing all existence, roared along Roy's plotted path toward the Blood Fort Andromeda.
In an instant,
"The Blood Fort Andromeda is destroyed…"
The arc shredded everything, peeling the Blood Fort Andromeda's region apart in warped space, pulverizing terrain and surroundings. Dust and debris cloaked the area.
Thanks to Mash's pre-deployed Noble Phantasm, [Lord Camelot], Ritsuka and others were spared.
Merlin's illusions hid Roy's escalating mana, so despite the Demon God Pillars and Humbaba sensing Roy nearby, they didn't detect his world-ending opening strike.
Their preparations, fortifying defenses, turning the grim fort into a labyrinth, were meant to stall Chaldea, buying time for Tiamat's unsealing.
But none expected Roy's brutal simplicity, skipping their maze for a direct showdown.
"It's… over, senpai?"
Everyone gaped at the strike's terror, jaws dropping at the kilometers-long gash through the forest, scarring Mesopotamia's plain.
Ishtar, seeing the attack's scale, thought privately:
Even my destruction of Mount Ebih wasn't this absurd?!
She knew Roy was strong, but this was unreasonable. She quietly shelved plans to teach him a lesson with her true form. She didn't want to eat that attack.
"No… not entirely wiped out."
Amid the awe, Merlin and Roy shook their heads.
Though devastating and swift, the enemy wouldn't die obediently.
Two life signs remained, meaning survivors.
They were…
A roar like the earth's cry resounded, a crimson sun plummeting from the sky.
With the Demon God Pillars and Gorgon's deaths, and the Blood Fort Andromeda's ritual circle lost, Tiamat's unsealing halted.
Two terrifying mana signatures sped toward them.
From the ocean's depths, a resonant Song of Creation began to play.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
[Evils of Humanity · Manifestation]
[Self-Unsealing: 40%]
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