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Gilgamesh was the Servant he had acquired, transferred from Tokiomi Tohsaka during the Fourth Holy Grail War. After receiving a "baptism" by the Holy Grail's black mud, he had successfully obtained a true physical body.
He would no longer return to the Throne of Heroes when the Holy Grail War concluded.
The two of them shared a common objective.
Kirei wanted to unleash the black mud within the Grail, plunging humanity into suffering purely to amuse himself. Gilgamesh, on the other hand, desired to use the Grail's black mud and its curses to exterminate the entirety of modern humanity.
Gilgamesh felt that all humans in the current era were "ugly." Such ugly creatures, he believed, no longer had any necessity to exist in the world.
Therefore, dealing with Illya and Heracles was a task that could be completely entrusted to Gilgamesh.
"What's going on?"
However, the moment Kirei Kotomine activated the Command Spell on his right hand, his expression shifted dramatically. He discovered that Lancer had not appeared before him as he had willed.
This was the first time he had ever encountered such a situation.
Theoretically, unless Lancer had been killed, it should be impossible for the summoning to fail.
And if Lancer had been killed, he, as the Master, should have been able to sense it.
"Trying to summon your Lancer? He's already been dealt with!"
Seeing Kirei Kotomine's reaction, Rin Tohsaka revealed a cold smirk.
Just moments ago, while they were on the way here, George had explained that he had already sealed Lancer within a special dimension. Even if Kirei Kotomine used a Command Spell, he would be completely unable to summon him back.
"Very well. That fool... I told him to retreat immediately if he couldn't win. He truly is brainless."
Hearing Rin Tohsaka's words, Kirei Kotomine sighed in resignation.
At this point, a theory had already formed in his mind. He surmised that when Lancer went to eliminate the "witness"—most likely the boy with a bit of magical energy standing before him—he must have run into Rin and her Archer.
If it were just Archer alone, it wouldn't have been a major problem.
The only explanation was that, for some unknown reason, Illya and her Berserker must have intervened and helped them.
Lancer, being a demigod, was by no means weak. But if he had to face both Archer and Berserker at the same time, he naturally stood no chance of winning.
"Go to hell! Gandr!"
Rin Tohsaka wasted no more time on words. Lifting her right hand, she fired volley after volley of red energy bullets straight at Kirei Kotomine.
"Don't interfere. I'm going to kill him with my own hands."
As Rin's voice fell, the red-robed Archer (EMIYA) transitioned from his spiritual form to his physical one. He projected two short swords into his hands and charged directly toward Kirei.
George nodded upon hearing this, casually seating himself on one of the long church pews.
Kirei Kotomine couldn't be killed just yet, as George still needed the intelligence stored in Kirei's mind, as well as the successful transfer of the Command Spells for Lancer.
However, he could let Rin Tohsaka vent her anger for now. In any case, even if she actually managed to kill him, as long as the soul remained intact, George could simply bring him back to life.
Illya likewise made no move to help. Her Heracles was down to his last life, so it was best to avoid combat if at all possible.
Besides, that Kirei Kotomine had now lost his Servant. He was definitely no match for Rin Tohsaka, who still had hers.
Shirou Emiya, on the other hand, wanted to help, but unfortunately, his abilities were far too limited.
And so, they all sat down next to George, once again entering the mode of sideline spectators munching on melon seeds.
Previously, they had watched Artoria battle Heracles; now, they were watching Rin Tohsaka and Archer battle the fake priest, Kirei Kotomine.
"Rin, magic of this level is completely useless against me."
Facing the combined assault from Rin and Archer, Kirei Kotomine remained perfectly calm. He swiftly batted away the Gandr shots with his Black Keys, then used his most proficient martial art, Bajiquan (Eight Extremities Fist), to parry Archer's attack.
As the strongest Master from the Fourth Holy Grail War and the one who nearly achieved victory, his strength was top-tier, complementing his high-level intellect.
From a young age, he had learned the terrifying Chinese martial art "Bajiquan" from his father. His close-quarters combat skills were first-class, allowing him to contend even with most Servants, provided they didn't use their Noble Phantasms.
Later, he was dispatched by the Church to the Mage's Association, where he studied under Tokiomi Tohsaka, the fifth-generation head of the Tohsaka family and a high-ranking member of the Association.
He learned alchemy, spiritual evocation, summoning, divination, and a whole series of other magecrafts, making him a true all-rounder.
Therefore, even when facing Rin and Archer alone, he would not be so easily defeated.
"So, he's just stalling for time, waiting for backup."
George, who had been observing the fight, suddenly had a flash of insight, a look of realization appearing on his face.
He had been wondering why Kirei Kotomine was consistently defending without seeking any opportunity to attack. After all, if he could just find a chance to eliminate Rin, Archer wouldn't necessarily continue to bother him.
It turned out he was dragging the fight out to wait for reinforcements.
George had already sensed three individuals arriving at the church gates. Or, to be more precise, two Servants and one human.
One of the Servants was exceptionally powerful, his magical energy reserves seeming to surpass even those of Berserker Heracles.
The other Servant and the human were familiar; he recognized them as Shinji Matou and Rider Medusa, whom he had seen at the Matou residence.
"Kirei, it seems your plans have run into a small, unexpected complication."
The church doors were kicked open yet again. A young man with golden hair, radiating an overwhelming aura of arrogance, strode inside.
When his gaze swept past George and Shirou Emiya to the row of seats, his eyes instantly lit up.
"Artoria Pendragon. It truly has been a long time. I never expected you would be summoned once more.
It seems this is fate. You are fortunate to have another opportunity to become my queen!"
"Gilgamesh! Why are you here?"
Artoria immediately switched from her spiritual form to her physical one, her face a mask of pure shock at the sight of Gilgamesh.
Gilgamesh had been summoned in the Fourth Holy Grail War, just as she had. His class had been Archer.
But the Archer class was already filled this time. Logically, Gilgamesh shouldn't have been able to be summoned at all.
"Because, unlike you, I never 'went back' in the first place.
I must thank you for splitting the Holy Grail with your sword. It allowed me to seize the opportunity to obtain a true physical body, freeing me from ever having to return to the Throne of Heroes."
Upon seeing Artoria, Gilgamesh completely ignored the ongoing battle with Kirei Kotomine; it wasn't as if Kirei would die anytime soon.
He wasn't truly in love with the woman named Artoria. Rather, in his eyes, the dazzling Artoria was akin to a great and magnificent treasure.
And his greatest hobby was collecting all manner of treasures.
"He's actually a Servant from the Fourth Holy Grail War. I had assumed it would be Caster or Assassin."
Hearing the dialogue between Artoria and Gilgamesh, George's mind processed the new information.
"What is this guy's Noble Phantasm?"
To be able to jump outside the rules of the Holy Grail War meant this Heroic Spirit's power was absolutely top-tier. Naturally, George was now extremely interested in the Noble Phantasms he possessed.
At that moment, Artoria's expression became incredibly grim.
"He has collected almost all Noble Phantasms from the Age of Gods. Because of that, his Noble Phantasms can be described as truly countless. His most powerful one is called Ea, the Star of Creation that Split Heaven and Earth. It is a Noble Phantasm capable of cleaving the entire world apart..."
Artoria quickly relayed all the information she knew about Gilgamesh.
To be honest, even now, with George's magical energy allowing her to unleash the Sword of Promised Victory (Excalibur) indefinitely, she didn't dare say she was confident in being able to defeat Gilgamesh.
(End of Chapter)