Thump... thump... thump...
Standing on scorched earth, the ancient "Mother of Creation" gently closed her eyes, her expression serene and tender. It was as if she had fallen into a deep slumber. Yet the moment she appeared, it felt like the ground itself pulsed in time with her heartbeat. Endless, shadowy grudges rose from the earth, swirling around Tiamat and forming dazzling galaxies.
Tiamat, the Mother of Creation, presides here. All resentment on this land was thoroughly purified a hundred years ago by Izaya Sajyou, leaving this place peaceful—a message for Tiamat: you can rest in peace. To her, the world is a cradle... a place to sleep undisturbed.
But sleep doesn't mean she's completely cut off from the outside world. When Izaya Sajyou set foot on this land, she could still sense his presence. Thus, if she detects an "enemy," she appears before Gilgamesh in this form.
There was no sign of her "awakening" from start to finish. Yet the moment Gilgamesh raised his head and saw the figure on the horizon, his body tensed instinctively. For a moment, he thought he heard the furious drumming of a king's heart within his chest—a heart-pounding so fierce it sent chills crawling over his skin.
The oppressive force of "Beast II" was enough to make any god shudder. Even the king's treasury seemed bleak before it.
Drip...
A bead of cold sweat rolled down Gilgamesh's forehead, slipping past his golden bangs and finally falling to the scorched earth below.
Cold sweat? Does this king, shielded by the very nature of a Servant, feel "fear"?
The lonely Golden King looked down at his hand, which, even now, trembled unconsciously. It was adrenaline, surging from facing this ancient being.
Tiamat... the Beast who symbolizes the goddess, the Mother of Creation, from ancient Mesopotamian myth. Gilgamesh, with two-thirds divinity, traces his divine bloodline back to Tiamat herself... In a sense, Gilgamesh could call her "Mother."
So... is the king about to flee in shame? Retreating at the mere sight of Tiamat, without even a fight?
The thought kindled his anger, which finally burned away all "fear." Every nerve in his body screamed at him to run, to escape...
But—who is he? The Sovereign King who possesses the treasures of the world and bids farewell to the gods! To him, the so-called Holy Grail War is a mere game against mongrels, not even requiring the use of his EA. Before the King's Treasury, any enemy is crushed. The Servant's legendary brilliance is to be displayed, and he will personally shatter everything with his own hands... This is the absolute might and arrogance of the King of Heroes. And he, alone, is worthy of such pride.
Yet now, he stood before a Servant he once looked down upon, and was trapped within this essential barrier... Fear? In the end, just a lowly mage's Servant... How could a "Mother" be caught by another's unique magecraft?
Even as Gilgamesh's chest swelled with endless rage, he abruptly raised his gaze. Blood and prana rushed to his head, and his crimson, snake-like pupils radiated unprecedented fury. Behind him, countless golden gates whirled open, illuminating the long, silent night!
It was neither magecraft nor a portal, but the door connecting the present world to the King's Treasury, transcending the laws of space.
One, ten, hundreds... In an instant, thousands of golden ripples exploded behind Gilgamesh. A brilliance forged entirely of pure "golden light," enough to outshine the gods themselves. There were blazing magic swords, chilling magic spears, battle axes of strange shapes, even shields inscribed with "runes" that could distort causality. Every treasure in the King's Treasury was an ultimate weapon for which future generations of heroes would stake their lives.
Yet now, like mass-produced weapons from a military factory, thousands of them were suspended, their sharp tips aimed at the black-haired man on the ground. The multitude of Noble Phantasms made the very air vibrate with savage sound.
The slumbering Mother Goddess frowned slightly, unconsciously. But in this moment, Gilgamesh noticed none of it. Slowly, expressionless, he raised his right hand.
"How dare you try to deceive this king with the word 'Mother'... You brat, enjoy this—"
The Golden King's lofty tone was like the beautiful requiem of an executioner, ready to crush this betrayer utterly.
"This is—'Gate of Babylon'!"
As his words fell, the golden Noble Phantasms in the sky transformed into inescapable, stunning meteor showers of light—an onslaught of golden shooting stars faster than all else.
…
Tokioimi Tohsaka stood quietly in his mage workshop. The air was tinged with the unique aroma of jewels and alchemical reagents. He closed his eyes slightly, waiting for news from his apprentice, Kotomine Kirei.
A few minutes earlier, Kirei had sent a direct report based on a familiar's shared vision: the King of Heroes had encountered the Caster of the Holy Grail War, whose Master was likely Irisviel, the homunculus of the Einzbern family. The Heroic King was out of control, but this was a mere coincidence—so long as the Assassin observed from the shadows and could gather the identities of all the Masters appearing tonight, he would have a decisive advantage in the Holy Grail War.
Unfortunately, Caster had opened a Reality Marble, and even Assassin could no longer observe what was happening inside.
Still, though Caster's identity was uncertain, if the opponent was Archer, there should be no one who could stand against him alone. After all, even a Reality Marble should not be able to restrain Archer.
Caster's defeat was only a matter of time. With this thought, Tohsaka felt slightly relieved.
Then—an overwhelming weakness struck him, as if his very bones were being drained. The sudden frailty made Tohsaka uneasy; he gripped the work-table, struggling to lie down on the sofa. Closing his eyes, he immersed his consciousness in his magical circuits.
What he saw was unimaginable. As a first-rate magus, his vast magical power was now being drawn into a vortex of inconceivable proportions. Gilgamesh was absorbing mana at a terrifying, unprecedented rate!
Tohsaka frowned, muttering unconsciously, "Archer... what in the world are you doing?!"
A Servant's output depends closely on their Master. Gilgamesh, with his high-rank skill "Independent Action A," could supply most of his own magical energy. But that only made Tohsaka angrier at this moment. With Independent Action A, Gilgamesh could still drain a huge amount of mana from him...
What had that heroic king encountered? Or had Caster somehow forced him to unleash his true nature, no matter the cost?
As his mind raced, an unexplainable anxiety rose in his chest. Tohsaka unconsciously pressed his fingertips against the Command Seals engraved on his hand. As a last resort, he would ensure, even at the risk of offending the King of Heroes, that he could bring him back...
…
On the snowy streets of Fuyuki, Assassin now blended into the shadows atop a building, silent as a ghost in the night. Thanks to Assassin's senses, her breath merged completely into the wind and snow. Her gaze was fixed on a certain spot radiating "strangeness."
A few minutes earlier, a short but terrifying battle had broken out on the empty street. And as the fight reached its climax, Caster had deployed their Reality Marble. What was happening inside was anyone's guess, but as an Assassin, she waited patiently, relaying familiar information on the battle between Heroic King and Caster to her Master.
Maybe, just maybe, Caster's Master... could be taken out during this time? Even the silver-haired woman, who seemed so weak, was within the Reality Marble— and when both sides were exhausted, it would not be hard to strike at her life.
As the top-class Assassin planned her next move, she suddenly sensed it—a faint mage's presence newly appeared on the street!
Assassin flitted like a specter to another rooftop, peering out at the presence. And then she saw it. Amid wind and snow, a girl in a school uniform with half-tied blond hair walked alone down the empty street. A faint Command Seal glimmered on her chest.
Most importantly... the girl was not accompanied by any Servant!
Was she too late to summon one? Or had her Servant left her side for some reason? A lone Master without a Servant... the perfect prey.
Assassin narrowed her eyes without hesitation, and relayed the information to her Master, Kotomine Kirei, through their contract.
"Master, the situation has changed. I've discovered a second Master on this street... The target is a blonde schoolgirl, and there's no sign of a Servant around her."
"Perhaps... should I secure her first?"
In the cathedral, the priest named Kotomine Kirei raised his head, thought for a moment, and nodded slightly. "I'll leave it to you."
With permission, Assassin gave a cruel smile: "Let me handle it." She extended her arms to the wind and snow, leaping from the rooftop.
…
Boom!
Around Gilgamesh, thousands of golden ripples blanketed the sky.
"Caster, you do have the right to make this king fight seriously."
The Golden King's arrogant voice echoed through the silent barrier, but in his red eyes, not a trace of "pleasure" could be found.
"But your mistake was daring to deceive this king with 'Mother'..."
"—Unforgivable!"
His roar was like a sentence of judgment. The king had unleashed his true self. There was no temptation, only a genuine sense of "annihilation."
Like a downpour of golden rain, they blasted toward the wasteland!
Yet this was Izaya's "World." As he slowly raised his right hand, the entire "Cradle of Beasts" came alive at his will.
Roooar!
The blackened, scorched ground erupted. A tsunami of shadows, made of billions of curses and hatreds, rose from beneath his feet, surging skyward to meet the golden deluge.
The collision of Noble Phantasms and grudges unleashed a storm of terror in this mental world, rivaling "Genesis" itself.
Gilgamesh, wielding treasures enough to slay heroes, found them blocked by this filthy "curse." The king's pride had never been so insulted—he was utterly enraged.
"Very well... very well. You wretched brat, your insolence is noted by this king."
The golden ripples behind him slowly closed.
"In that case, take your twisted world and vanish within the light of EA!"
As Gilgamesh raised his hand, a deep red wave slowly unfurled at his side, as if linking to the root of the universe itself. He summoned the ultimate "divine weapon," a thing even gods feared.
It spun slowly, like a cylindrical drill bit, signifying the "breaking open of the world"—Enuma Elish!
"Behold—EA!"
The moment EA descended, the entire Cradle of Distant Beasts was overwhelmed and began to scream. Stars trembled in the sky, the earth split, and this special Reality Marble buzzed under the force of the Noble Phantasm.
At this moment—the energy surge was enough to "split the world," and at last, within this cradle, the oldest "sleeper" was awakened.
On the horizon, Tiamat's divine body stood as silent as a mountain range, her lashes trembling slightly.
Gilgamesh didn't notice. He raised EA high, aiming its mightiest blow at the black-haired man lying on the ground!
"—Awaken, EA, and toast to this king!"
The sword of deviation began to spin at high speed, its red wind pressure tearing space asunder. Stars fell from the sky; the dark, scorched earth collapsed. This was a blow capable of shattering reality itself and returning all to "nothingness"!
"—[Enuma Elish]!"
As EA's power crashed down—
For the first time in millennia, Tiamat's enormous, star-like eyes slowly opened.
She gazed around in a daze, as if not quite understanding what was happening. But as she sensed the tremendous energy, her eyes focused.
She saw the Golden King raising EA high.
She still seemed confused by what was happening before her eyes.
But Tiamat's "instinct"—the "Sea of Life," the most fundamental power of the "Mother of Creation"—took over.
She "felt" it.
A threat.
—Buzz!
No warning at all!
Endless black mud erupted from Tiamat's massive body, like a sea swimming upstream. It was not a curse, but the thickest, most primordial "sea of life" born at the dawn of creation!
The black mud didn't attack Gilgamesh, but instead gently met the force of EA, which was strong enough to split the world.
The world-shattering light of EA, upon touching this dark and warm "sea," was like a handful of sand tossed into the ocean—quietly swallowed up.
No explosion. No impact. No sound.
Before the Sea of Creation, even the force that opens worlds melts away, reverting to the most primal magic.
Gilgamesh held EA aloft, his motion frozen in mid-swing. For the first time, the face always brimming with absolute confidence and arrogance was filled with an expression of disbelief, as if witnessing a miracle.
EA... was swallowed?
On the horizon, Tiamat's enormous head, with a hint of curiosity, looked gently at the black-haired man lying on the ground. She recognized that teenage man... after all, it was thanks to him that she could enjoy such a rare, peaceful slumber in Izaya's "Cradle of Beasts."
Soon, Tiamat turned her curious gaze to the nearby small figure of gold. And then, like a dolphin's song echoing from the depths of the sea, a distant, gentle voice sounded directly in the depths of Gilgamesh's soul.
The voice was soft and peaceful, yet to Gilgamesh, it struck like thunder, blanking his mind completely.
Tiamat tilted her head, looking at the Heroic King with a puzzled expression.
"Aaa? (Child, just what were you doing just now?)"