---o---
[Light Screen Bullet Comments——
After the King of Conquerors dealt with Assassin using a single Noble Phantasm, the viewers of the light screen gained a much deeper understanding of his way of the king.
The path of the conqueror was indeed exhilarating. So much so that many ordinary people and chuunibyou teenagers couldn't help but get fired up, wanting to follow behind the King of Conquerors and charge across the battlefield. Fortunately, it was difficult for ordinary people to comment on the light screen; only those acknowledged by the world could do so.
[Uchiha Madara: "A fine dance. His capacity is greater than I imagined. Such a path of conquest is indeed intoxicating."]
[Lord El-Melloi II: "Ah—what a nostalgic scene. Even after so many years, I have never forgotten that sight——"]
[Otto Apocalypse: "An Intrinsic Bounded Field... the world it constitutes is remarkably similar to the fragmented World Bubbles within the Sea of Quanta."]
[Conan Edogawa: "An astonishing Noble Phantasm. The Noble Phantasms of top-tier Servants are truly on a different level from Lancer's and Assassin's. The impact it creates is just too immense."]
[Ai Haibara: "I'm now quite curious about the Noble Phantasms of the other two kings. And what about Elysia and Solomon, who haven't used their full power from the very beginning? Could they create an even more exaggerated spectacle?"]
In the bullet comments, countless viewers were discussing the King of Conquerors' Noble Phantasm. After all, the ability to manifest one's mindscape like an Intrinsic Bounded Field was incredibly powerful, and certainly more spectacular to watch than Lancer's Noble Phantasms.
---o---
[Light Screen Projection, as the banquet of kings reached its end, the story continued——
In the brightly lit center of Fuyuki City, a terrifying amount of magical energy was gathering with reckless abandon. There was only one Servant who would so blatantly disregard the rules——
The camera shifted to a dark, damp sewer, where Caster, Bluebeard, appeared.
After failing to retrieve his Saint, Caster's mood was heavy. But then, as if struck by a sudden realization, he began to shout with excitement: "Oh, my Saint~~ I understand, I finally understand! Nothing I do will ever matter, because of that vile God! That detestable God! That hypocritical God will never allow me to obtain what I desire! He will do everything in his power to stop me, to destroy everything I hold dear!"
"Oooooh~ God! I curse you! I, Gilles de Rais, curse you! Aaaaaah~"
"God~ why have you not been destroyed? Why, even after committing so many unforgivable acts, can you still remain so high and mighty???"
"Unforgivable! Incomprehensible! Unacceptable! I, Gilles de Rais, will curse you for all eternity! God!"
After screaming these words hysterically with his arms outstretched, Bluebeard suddenly clutched his head with his remaining arm, his eyes bulging as if they might pop out of their sockets at any moment.
"No, no, no~ that's not it! Even if I say these things, even if I do this, even if I curse Him, He will not care in the slightest! He is, He is, He is..."
"Then, why not destroy the garden that God holds so dear?"
A voice suddenly whispered by Bluebeard's ear. It was Francesca—Gilles de Rais's friend, and the true culprit behind his fall into depravity.
"Because, you see—no matter what, it is a fact that the Saint has been deluded by God. She has now forgotten even her most loyal believer. So... what meaning is there left in this world? Gilles—don't you wish to see that lofty God fall as well?"
Francesca asked with delight. No matter how she tried to explain, Gilles de Rais had already mistaken that holy king for Jeanne d'Arc. There was no need to correct him. Let this Holy Grail War descend into even greater chaos and disorder.
Enlightened by Francesca's words, Bluebeard grew even more agitated. "Yes! That's it! Having been forgotten by my Saint, I have nothing left to fear! Yes, that's it! With my last strength, my final ounce of mana, I will ignite the flames of rebellion against that foolish God——"
"My dear friend—help me. Let me use this final vessel to awaken the Saint's soul. With your power, help me call upon the god from 'The Place That Absolutely Should Not Be Connected To'——"
As Bluebeard uttered these words, Francesca's expression shifted from delight to astonishment. She hadn't been mistaken, not at all. Choosing Gilles de Rais as her friend was absolutely one of the best decisions she had ever made in her long life—
After witnessing King Arthur's power, Gilles de Rais knew his own Noble Phantasm could not defeat her. So, was he seeking her help? That book—only when she used it could its greatest power be unleashed!!]
---o---
[Light Screen Bullet Comments——
What does that mean? What book? What power?
The viewers were completely bewildered at this point. Caster's true identity was Bluebeard. While famous in fairy tales, he was insignificant compared to the likes of the three kings or Solomon. Logically, he shouldn't stand a chance against them.
But judging by Gilles de Rais's behavior, could he have another trump card? And Francesca, a tax evader who couldn't even defeat the old worm, where did she get the nerve to challenge the three kings?
And Gilles de Rais wanted her help? She could barely protect herself under Solomon's control, what damn help could she be?
As countless viewers expressed their confusion and doubt, the King of Heroes, one of the participants in this Holy Grail War, couldn't help but frown.
"The Place That Absolutely Should Not Be Connected To"—could it be... those vermin that were nauseating from a psychological to a physical level?
If it was really them, then this would become a massive problem. This would no longer be about the Holy Grail War. If handled poorly, the entire world might be at risk of destruction.
Was King Solomon really allowing these two to run rampant? Did he truly believe he could handle those Outer Gods? What exactly had he seen with that Clairvoyance of his?
Gilgamesh pondered. He refused to believe Solomon's Clairvoyance couldn't foresee Bluebeard's actions. Even if he was a king without a self, he should not permit the appearance of Outer Gods.
Damn it—looking at his on-screen self, Gilgamesh found that he had never despised himself more than at this moment. If he had known, he wouldn't have been so arrogant.
For one thing, he hadn't even activated his Sha Nagba Imuru. To this day, he was still being played like a fiddle by that selfless king. If those Outer Gods truly appeared, his Servant body would probably be toast on the spot.
If he had activated his clairvoyance, he would at least have had time to upgrade his own Spiritual Core configuration, so as not to be completely helpless when the time came.
Aaaargh—I'm starting to feel more and more that my younger self was an idiot!!!
The King of Heroes, currently in the Tohsaka residence, was tearing at his hair, wishing he could just beat the crap out of his on-screen self—though he was currently in his youth as well.
---o---
[Light Screen Projection——
Gilles de Rais slowly extended his hand, offering forth his Noble Phantasm, that book bound in human skin—
Prelati's Spellbook—the result of using magecraft while abandoning reason through a concoction prepared by Prelati herself. It possessed an astronomically small chance of connecting to "The Place That Absolutely Should Not Be Connected To."
This book was originally Francesca's Noble Phantasm, but it had been gifted to Gilles de Rais. As long as Gilles de Rais did not return the book on a spiritual level, this Noble Phantasm could never be used by her.
Of course, Gilles de Rais was not offering the book to return it; in his current state, he was completely unaware of such a notion. And Francesca would naturally not ask her friend for it back. For her, who possessed an immortal body, it didn't matter whether she had this Noble Phantasm or not.
It was simply that Gilles de Rais could not truly communicate with the existences from beyond the stars, which was why he chose to ask for Francesca's help.
The price for summoning an Outer God was unimaginable. Even with Francesca's assistance, Gilles de Rais endured immense agony—a pain that stemmed from the very depths of his soul—
But that didn't matter. As long as he could reawaken Jeanne's soul, he would have no regrets, even if it meant burning his own Spiritual Core to become a vessel for an Outer God. This was his, Gilles de Rais's, faith in the Saint!!
At this moment, the camera pulled back, allowing the viewers to vaguely make out the current situation in the shadows.
Only then did people realize that Bluebeard's lower body had already transformed into a mass of enormous tentacles, or rather, a single giant tentacle had corroded his lower half.
The entire sewer was filled with slimy, disgusting tentacles. They were massive and numerous, piled together in a grotesque heap that was enough to make one's skin crawl and goosebumps erupt just by looking at it.
At this point, everyone could see that something was terribly wrong with Bluebeard. He seemed to have summoned something horrifying, which was why his lower body had been eroded.
Then, the scene changed again. The tentacles began to accelerate their corrosion of Bluebeard's body, wrapping around his torso. A new round of mutation began, accompanied by an ominous purple-black energy that distorted even the space around him.
Even through the light screen, many people felt extremely uncomfortable watching this scene. A strange sense of vertigo washed over them, accompanied by nausea, much like motion sickness.
A cross-dimensional attack? —Even if it was only psychological discomfort, it was still terrifying. If it was this frightening through a screen, wouldn't seeing it in person kill you instantly?
"Now—let us once again raise the banner of salvation!!"
Just before his Spiritual Core completely vanished, Bluebeard let out one final cry. To trade his life and soul for the Saint's memories was perhaps the most romantic thing he could imagine.
As the tentacles writhed, Bluebeard was finally, completely, devoured.
The camera suddenly cut to Solomon's Master, Marisbury, but only showed the lower half of his face. The man's smile had become one of immense pleasure.
Everything was proceeding according to the script. How could he not be happy? Then, his gentle voice sounded once more:
"Now then, let tonight's true drama begin!"
The scene returned to the Einzbern castle. The King of Conquerors had already dispelled his Intrinsic Bounded Field, and everyone was back in the real world.
However, Waver still looked as if his soul hadn't returned from the shock, and Irisviel was still terrified, not yet having recovered either.
Gilgamesh had remained seated on the ground the entire time, arms crossed, his face expressionless, leaving no clue as to what he was thinking.
Artoria stared at the King of Conquerors with a grave expression, clearly viewing him as a great adversary.
The King of Conquerors sat back down, picked up his golden goblet, and drained the wine in one gulp. "Has everyone said what they wanted to say? Then, for tonight, let us end it he—hm?"
It wasn't just the King of Conquerors; the gazes of all three kings simultaneously fell on one person—Elysia, who had suddenly stood up for reasons unknown.
At this moment, Elysia had no time to pay attention to their expressions. Her eyes revealed an unprecedented seriousness, something no one, including the viewers of the light screen, had ever seen from her before.
"Elysia... did something happen?"
Saber asked, puzzled. In her senses, nothing strange seemed to have occurred. Why did Elysia look as if a great enemy was approaching?
"I don't know... there's a very chaotic aura... gathering in the city center... it feels wrong, this uncomfortable feeling..."
Elysia didn't continue. The natural enemy of humanity—that was the feeling this aura gave her. But why? She hadn't encountered such an absurd existence until now.
It was as if the world had suddenly undergone a colossal change. Elysia's intuition told her this was a catastrophe capable of destroying the world!
As if in response to Elysia's feeling, a massive surge of magical energy erupted from the city center!
At the same time, the three Servants sensed the appearance of a powerful and evil magical presence. Their gazes shot in unison toward Fuyuki City, as if something had just appeared there.
Irisviel and Waver were stunned, having not yet sensed it. Irisviel couldn't help but ask, "Saber, what is it?"
Waver also asked, "Rider, what did you guys find? Why so serious... don't scare me~"
This sudden development terrified the timid Waver. Elysia, the three kings—this was the most luxurious lineup in the Holy Grail War, and now they all looked toward the city center in perfect unison, as if rehearsed.
"Miss Elysia... is that?"
The golden goblet in the King of Conquerors' hand cracked slightly under the pressure of the immense magical energy.
"I need to go check it out——"
Without answering the King of Conquerors, Elysia shot toward the city center at a speed that even the three kings could barely follow.
That was the city center, where countless ordinary people were. For the sake of both reason and emotion, Elysia could not abandon so many human lives.
At that moment, Gilgamesh's brow furrowed. He realized this matter was not so simple. This magical energy had already surpassed the upper limit of the Holy Grail War.
Then... Sha Nagba Imuru—activate!
Gilgamesh was arrogant, but he wasn't a fool. This disturbance was clearly no small matter, so he decisively chose to understand the situation before acting, but...
"Urgh——"
As if struck by a heavy blow, Gilgamesh felt a wave of dizziness and immediately shut down Sha Nagba Imuru to recover. What was happening?
He couldn't activate it? Was this man-made?
Who in the world could possibly seal this king's Noble Phantasm?!]